Yesterday we had an explosion of reactions from members of Congress and from our Blue America-endorsed candidates regarding what many people feel is a betrayal by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. I know that John would never brag about it but when Hoyer was fighting for the Majority Leader job, John was the loudest voice on the Internet in opposition, predicting... well, just the kind of thing that happened yesterday. Hit that link and read why respected congressional legal minds like Jerrold Nadler, Tom Allen Russ Feingold, and Chris Dodd are saying no to Hoyer's compromise capitulation. When I was in DC recently I ran into Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) and I congratulated him on finding a very nasty little loophole the Bush Regime had somehow inserted in some legislation when no one was looking. He beamed and was happy that someone knew about his efforts... and then told me his re-election was in jeopardy and asked for help from our PAC. "Congressman Welch," I said politely, you can't be in jeopardy when the Republicans can't even find a third-tier candidate to run against you." He laughed. He wasn't laughing today, though, when he explained why he would vote against the Hoyer-Bush plan to do grave violence to the Constitution:

“I simply do not believe any president, especially this president, should have unilateral or unchecked authority to conduct surveillance without judicial oversight. Congress has an obligation to protect our national security without sacrificing basic rights provided in our Constitution. “While this compromise reflects improvements over previous flawed proposals, it is a compromise I will not support. I have consistently opposed any legislation that grants retroactive immunity for telecommunication companies that cooperated with the Bush administration’s warrantless wiretapping. Regrettably, this latest proposal fails to hold the administration and the companies accountable for their actions. The American people deserve to know exactly what happened and they deserve to know who is accountable. This bill fails that test."

Very polite but very much to the point. Peter Welch stands with the people of Vermont and the people of the United States, not with Bush, Hoyer and their big criminal campaign donors. Another member, who has asked to remain anonymous, for obvious reasons, just said this: "Steny Hoyer is the best friend money can buy." We'll see all the competition for the best friends money can buy during the vote today.

UPDATE: Blue America's John Hall speaks out against FISA:

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Down With Tyranny!: 

If my memory serves me well, the first time I spoke with John Hall was when I found out Joe Lieberman was using his classic smash, "Still The One," as a campaign song in his fruitless primary campaign against Ned Lamont. Knowing John is a committed progressive, I called to warn him that the reactionary, warmongering Lieberman had misappropriated his much-loved song. Since Lieberman was still claiming-- albeit falsely-- to be a "Democrat" in 2006, even if he wasn't voting like one, Hall let it slide. Blue America endorsed him anyway, he won and has served with great distinction, one of the best of 2006's freshman class.

MSNBC is reporting that Hall just found out that one of Lieberman's closest conspirator's, John McCain, is also using his song without permission. Although Hall still isn't calling out Holy Joe, he has pointed out that song theft is just another in a long list of ways John McCain is just like George Bush (another crooked pol claiming to worship at the alter of property rights who stole "Still the One" without paying any royalties).

"This is yet another example of John McCain not learning anything from George Bush's mistakes,” Hall wrote First Read in an interview over e-mail. “First, McCain adopted Bush's failed policy of an open-ended war in Iraq, then he wrapped his arms around the failed Bush economic policies that have put the squeeze on middle class families. Now, he's making the same mistake George Bush made illegally using a copyrighted song without asking either the writers or the performers for permission."