Media Mutters for Murica: The AP on the NSA

Hard to predict 6th Circuit's NSA ruling

The program monitors international phone calls and e-mails to or from the United States involving people the government suspects have terrorist links. A secret court has been set up to grant warrants for such surveillance, but the government says it can't always wait for a court to take action.

Note that anonymity is granted to "the government." Any executive branch employee with a name attached would not be eager to demonstrate dishonesty or ignorance by failing to mention that, according to FISA, the government doesn't have to wait for the FISA court to take action, since it can start surveillance immediately and request a retrospective warrent. The argument ascribed to "the government" and not refuted by DAN SEWELL, is based on the false claim that FISA requires court action before surveillance begins.

Today no government employee was forced by DAN SEWELL to demonstrate that he or she is either shamefully ignorant or shamelessly dishonest or both, since DAN SEWELL is willing to demonstrate that he DAN SEWELL is either totally incompetent or totally dishonest or both. I am sure that ap affiliated newspapers have many readers who are just as ignorant as DAN SEWELL is or pretends to be, so that these readers will be deceived by DAN SEWELL and believe that the Bush administration had to chose whether to obey the law or take action without waiting for a court.

Since this is a crucial fact vital to understanding our President's total contempt for the concept of the rule of law, DAN SEWELL has demonstrated total contempt for the truth and the profession of journalism and should quit pretending to be a journalist.