In 2004, I broke from much of the progressive blogosphere by tacitly supporting Arlen Specter's reelection bid. My reasoning at the time was simple: if the Democrats did not retake the Senate, Specter would be preferable to Jon Kyl as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. After all, Specter had helped to thwart the nomination of Robert Bork in 1987, the year after his reelection, and he might act similarly after reelection in 2005. Unfortunately, I was wrong in my estimation of Specter's dedication to defending women's right to choice.
But can Specter gain salvation? Is there any way for him to redeem himself? On the eve of Judiciary Committee hearings into the legality of the Bush administration's extrajuridical policy of domestic spying, it sounds like Specter may have finally found his spine. The International Herald Tribune's Brett Knowlton has the story.
The Republican who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee said today that he believed the Bush administration had violated the law with its warrantless surveillance program and that its legal justifications for the program were "strained and unrealistic."The program "is in flat violation of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act," said the chairman, Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, who will open committee hearings on Monday.
Despite these tough words, Specter is not there yet. For instance, while Specter clearly believes that the Bush administration's activities are illegal, he -- in a very lawyerlike manner, is unwilling to affirm the constitutionality of the law (the Supreme Court has yet to take a look at the 1978 law). What's more, Specter effectively balked at Democratic calls to subpoena documents from the administration, saying he might consider doing so in the future but is not yet ready to do so now.
But if Specter makes full use of his committee's robust investigative powers to probe the depth of the Bush administration's activities, shedding light on the extent to which the White House circumvented procedures set by law, he could begin to restore some balance to Washington. Moreover, should Specter indeed follow today's rhetoric with real action, a case could be made for further investigation -- and perhaps even impeachment proceedings against the President -- in the case of Democratic control of the House in the 110th Congress.
So call Senator Specter's office and tell him that you believe he should stop at nothing in his investigation into President Bush's domestic spying program. Ask his staffers, "If Senator Specter believes that these activities are illegal, what is he going to do about it?" Specter's Washington number is 202-224-4254; his Philadelphia number is 215-597-7200; his Pittsburgh office is 412-644-3400; and the telephone numbers of all of his other offices are listed here.
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