Senators’ Shame

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

New York’s senators, Charles Schumer and Hillary Clinton, who started out with votes in favor of the war in Iraq and in favor of funds to fight it, are chickening out now in the choice between defending America and enriching the trial lawyers. That was the message of yesterday’s vote on amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Centrist Democrats such as Senators Bayh, Feinstein, Lincoln, McCaskill, Webb, and even the post-primary Barack Obama voted in favor of the amendments, which authorize the Bush administration to do something it already has a constitutional right to do, which is listen to phone calls between suspected Al Qaeda members abroad and the individuals with whom they are speaking in America. Mr. Schumer and Mrs. Clinton joined with the minority of hard leftists — Barbara Boxer, Bernie Sanders, Russell Feingold — who opposed the amendments.

The legislation passed yesterday also provides retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies, such as New York-based Verizon, that facilitated the administration’s wiretapping. That is trouble for trial lawyers, who hope that the phone companies are the next tobacco, asbestos, silicone breast implants-style target for a class action legal-fee jackpot. Back in the voting over the Iraq War, both Mr. Schumer and Mrs. Clinton spoke movingly of their special responsibility as the senators representing ground zero, where the terrorists took so many lives.

Now, less than seven short years later, they have gotten to the point of putting the agenda of the trial lawyers ahead of protecting our country by allowing the administration to listen to the terrorists’ telephone calls. Mr. Schumer and Mrs. Clinton have wound up to the left of Mr. Obama, which is no doubt why they are stuck in the Senate and he stands a good chance of being the next president of America, a position in which he will want every power he can get to keep Americans, including New Yorkers, safe and to preserve and defend our Constitution.


The New York Sun

© 2025 The New York Sun Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The material on this site is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used.

The New York Sun

Sign in or  Create a free account

or
By continuing you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use