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Political Web, page A1 … for 11:15 AM ET, December 20, 2005
Current Politics Page     Also:   Tech

Top Items:

Joshua Roberts / Newsweek:
Bush's Snoopgate  —  The president was so desperate to kill The New York Times' eavesdropping story, he summoned the paper's editor and publisher to the Oval Office.  But it wasn't just out of concern about national security.  —  Bush says he had 'legal authority' to permit …
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James Rainey / Los Angeles Times:
Critics Question Timing of Surveillance Story  —  The New York Times, which knew about the secret wiretaps for more than a year, published because of a reporter's new book, sources say.  —  The New York Times first debated publishing a story about secret eavesdropping on Americans as early as last fall …
Discussion: Eschaton, Roger Ailes and Attytood
Eric Lichtblau / New York Times:
F.B.I. Watched Activist Groups, New Files Show  —  WASHINGTON, Dec. 19 - Counterterrorism agents at the Federal Bureau of Investigation have conducted numerous surveillance and intelligence-gathering operations that involved, at least indirectly, groups active in causes as diverse as the environment …
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Spencer S. Hsu / Washington Post:
FBI Papers Show Terror Inquiries Into PETA; Other Groups Tracked  —  FBI counterterrorism investigators are monitoring domestic U.S. advocacy groups engaged in antiwar, environmental, civil rights and other causes, the American Civil Liberties Union charged yesterday as it released new FBI records …
Kevin Drum / The Washington Monthly:
WHAT IS THE NSA UP TO?....So what's the nature of the secret NSA bugging program?  Why did the Bush administration feel like they couldn't continue to seek warrants via the usual FISA procedures?  Take a look at the following quotes and you can see a single thread that starts to emerge:
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Opinion Journal:
Thank You for Wiretapping  —  Why the Founders made presidents dominant …
Discussion: The Rude Pundit
Hindrocket / Power Line:
A REALLY OBVIOUS POINT
Discussion: World O'Crap
Walid Phares / The Counterterrorism Blog:
Catch them, but do not watch them!..  —  "Use their systems …
Discussion: Cold Fury and Froggy Ruminations
George F. Will / Washington Post:
Why Didn't He Ask Congress?  —  The president's authorization of domestic surveillance by the National Security Agency contravened a statute's clear language.  Assuming that urgent facts convinced him that he should proceed anyway and on his own, what argument convinced him that he lawfully could?
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New York Times:
Administration Cites War Vote in Spying Case  —  WASHINGTON, Dec. 19 - President Bush and two of his most senior aides argued Monday that the highly classified program to spy on suspected members of terrorist groups in the United States grew out of the president's constitutional authority …
Washington Post:
Vital Presidential Power  —  A U.S. president has just received word that American counterterrorist operatives have captured a senior al Qaeda operative in Pakistan.  Among his possessions are a couple of cell phones — phones that contain several American phone numbers.
Washington Post:
Senator Sounded Alarm in '03  —  Rockefeller Wrote Cheney to Voice Concerns on Spying  —  John D. Rockefeller IV, a wealthy man representing a poor state, had been the top Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee for six months when he sat down to a secret briefing on July 17, 2003.
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Emily Francona / Intelligence Perspectives:
NSA: Domestic communications intercepts
New York Times:
Millions Are Left to Make It to Work Any Way They Can  —  Workers walked to their offices in bitter cold, long lines formed for taxis and the police inspected cars at tunnels and bridges as transit workers started a strike this morning, shutting down New York City's subway and bus system …
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Evan Coyne Maloney / >bt: Brain Terminal:
Strike Shuts Down NYC Subways & Buses  —  20 December 2005 @ 3:43AM >> For the first time since 1980, the New York City public transit system is completely shut down due to a strike.  Transit Workers Union head Roger Toussaint made the announcement shortly after 3:00AM local time.
Washington Post:
President's Approval Rating Rebounds  —  President Bush's approval rating has surged in recent weeks, reversing what had been an extended period of decline, with Americans now expressing renewed optimism about the future of democracy in Iraq, the campaign against terrorism and the U.S. economy …
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Lydia Saad / Gallup:   Negative Attitudes on Iraq Prove Hard to Change
Mark Blumenthal / Mystery Pollster:
NOT SUCH AN OUTLIER AFTER ALL? … Advantage, Mr. Todd.
Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …
Bull Moose:
Big Brother W.?  —  The Moose doesn't think it's 1984.  —  The latest imbroglio over the revelation that the government eavesdropped into the international phone calls of U.S. citizens does not set the Moose's antlers on fire.  The Administration is going to have to offer a better explanation …
Discussion: Cold Fury
Opinion Journal:
Our Friends the Pakistanis  —  Support for the U.S. is surging in some parts of the Muslim world.  —  So much for the popularly peddled view that anti-Americanism in the Muslim world is so pervasive and deep-rooted it might take generations to alter.  A new poll from Pakistan …
Discussion: Blogs for Bush and protein wisdom
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Greyhawk / Mudville Gazette:
"MIKE"  —  Via email:  —  Came across your blog this morning, and thought I'd share my thoughts as the dad of an American Soldier killed in action four months ago.  My son was standing cover flank for two buddies checking out a suspicous location in the roadway while on patrol at 2:20 A.M. 16 Aug when an IED exploded.
Daniel J. Solove / Concurring Opinions:
Beyond His Power: Bush's Authorization of Warrantless NSA Surveillance  —  In this post, I aim to explore more in depth whether Bush had the legal power to authorize warrantless NSA surveillance.  As I was putting the finishing touches on this post, I noticed that Orin Kerr beat me to the punch …
RELATED ITEM:

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More Items:

New York Times:
Governments Tremble at Google's Bird's-Eye View
Michael A. Fletcher / Washington Post:
President Takes the Offensive With Press
Discussion: Daily Pundit
CNN:
Bush: Secret wiretaps won't stop
Discussion: Right Wing News and Sadly, No!
Mark Steyn / Telegraph:
Racism is bad - so is self-delusion
Discussion: Tim Blair
Victor Fouad / canadiancoalition.com:
Liberal strategy a dangerous mix of religion and politics
Discussion: Daimnation!
New York Times:
The Fog of False Choices
Associated Press:
Iran bans Western music
Discussion: Althouse and Gawker
Doug Struck / Washington Post:
Shiite Alliance Leads In Partial Iraq Count

Earlier Picks:

G. Jeffrey MacDonald / Christian Science Monitor:
Investors speak out on free speech
Discussion: The Peking Duck
Shailagh Murray / Washington Post:
Stevens Holds Senate in Session
George Will / realclearpolitics.com:
Why Didn't Bush Ask Congress?
Washington Post:
Going Too Far  —  IS THE NATION becoming complacent about the terrorist threat?
Katherine Kersten / Minneapolis Star Tribune:
When the enemy is a patient, emotions held in check
Discussion: Captain's Quarters
Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:
washingtonpost.com > Live Discussions
Discussion: Poynter Online and mediabistro
Richard Ford / Times of London:
'Britishness test' for imams is abandoned
Discussion: AMERICAN FUTURE
cbpp.org:
WITHOUT FULL KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT THEY ARE VOTING ON:
 
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