John Kerry has decided that the solution to the little problem with the executive branch illegally spying on Americans without a warrant is to make it legal, according to
this Reuters story. From the article:
"What he's (Rove) trying to pretend is somehow Democrats don't want to eavesdrop appropriately to protect the country. That's a lie," Kerry said. "We're prepared to eavesdrop wherever and whenever necessary in order to make America safer. . ."
But Kerry said the spying has to be legal and constitutional and if Bush needs the law to be changed, "then come to us and tell us"
Kerry is right in that there is a problem here in that the law was violated. But that's not the only problem, nor is it necessarily the most important. The problem with Kerry's harebrained idea is that there isn't ANY way to implement the data mining program that the administration is evidently pursuing without violating the fourth amendment to the Constitution.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
The Constitution is quite clear on this issue. "No Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause". The fact that there are terrorists out there, and there are, does not provide probable cause to effect a search on tens of thousands of Americans with no connection to terrorism whatsoever.
Then no amount of lawmaking by Congress can change that short of a Constitutional amendment. So why offer it? Especially after Kerry called for an independent counsel to investigate the present program? I can only imagine it to be more of John Kerry voting against the spying before he votes for it. It embarasses me that he was our standard bearer in the last election, and I wish he would just STFU already.