Hang It Up, Jane Harman

by Steve Soto

If you are like me, you may wonder how House and Senate Democrats continually act as doormats for this administration, even though Congress has constitutional prerogatives in oversight, and if need be, impeachment. But if you want to gag at a first-hand example of how we got here, read the lame explanation by former House Intelligence Committee ranking member Jane Harman on why she allowed the Bush Administration to get away with illegal domestic spying for so many years, and then read how everyday Americans eviscerate her explanation over at TPM. New York Times reporter Eric Lichtblau's new book "Bush's Law" is out April 1st, wherein he lays out how the administration has gotten away with all of it. You can buy a copy of the book through the Amazon link on the left side of this site.

Keep in mind that this woman, the most powerful Democrat in the House for several years when it came to intelligence matters, took it on faith that the program was legal because . . . . the Bush Administration told her it was. And this was after the Iraqi war justification had begun to unravel on a pile of lies.

When this era's history is written, there will be a collective gasp at what the GOP and this White House did to this country and our Constitution. But the condemnation should not stop at the GOP; there is plenty of blame for House and Senate Democrats as well, and Harman and Jay Rockefeller are first in line.