Connecting the Dots

I subscribe to the Republican National Committee's web broadcast; so I receive blasts from Ken Mehlmen begging me to support the latest Republican cause. Today I was urged to write about the president's surveillance program. Mr. Mehlmen states that it is matter of national security that the president have the authority to spy on American citizens.

Here is why he's wrong:

1) The president's power is limited only by the requirement of getting a secret warrant. In times of urgency he is allowed to convene the secret court within seventy-two hours after surveillance has begun. The concern here is that spys may learn of the surveillance if the established procedure is followed. My response to that is that if spys are that deeply embedded in our government, we have more serious problems than the president having to get a warrant.

2) We are a free society, and as such we must pay a price for that freedom. The question becomes, then, was an event like September 11th to dear of a price? My response is that even with legal surveillance our government ignored the warnings about September 11th. How would trashing the Constitution have improved our intelligence? We had all the information necessary to prevent the attack and ignored it.

3) Mr. Mehlmen says that spying is not conducted on ordinary Americans planning little leagues practices and pot luck dinners. My response is how do we know? The secret warrants are supposed to the assurance, the protection, of the American public. How do we know the government isn't using its "war-time authority" to spy on its legitimate opponents? There has been so much misinformation come from this administration that the Constitutional safeguards cannot be ignored. If they slow our war on terrorists, then that is the price that the American public must be willing to pay to be the leader of the free world. As Americans we enjoy unprecedented privilege and wealth. With that comes the possibility of sacrifice, possibly the ultimate sacrifice. Can we reasonably ask our men and women in uniform to actively risk paying that price when we are not willing to risk that possiblity ourselves? The likelihood of another September 11th is very small and we have safeguards in place to protect us. A secret court granting a secret warrant is a tiny price to pay for the liberty we enjoy.