83 Disgraceful Democrats.

 

 

 

 

No, Anthony Weiner is not on the list. What these Democrats did is far worse than anything Anthony Weiner has ever done. These are the 83 Democrats who caved in to both Obama and Nancy Pelosi and voted to keep the NSA domestic  surveillance program exposed by Edward Snowden, and now opposed by 67% of Americans and 205 members of the U.S. House.

Pelosi, who has been far more disgraceful to the Democratic agenda than anything Anthony Weiner ever did, lobbied hard with House Democrats at  Obama's bidding to keep the surveillance program intact.  And 83 weak Democrats went along. But  the amendment to defund the program, something that was considered a fringe effort only two weeks ago was defeated by only by 7 votes 205-212. So much for Snowden being a traitor.

Pelosi, who has taken on the characteristics of the candidate she supported during the Democratic primaries and as such,  has previously shredded her integrity on healthcare reform by dropping the public option which she had called "the centerpiece of healthcare reform"  to support Obama's cave in to the health insurance lobby in what is now Obamacare, did it again on the NSA surveillance program. 

Pelosi  who was recently booed on stage for her attack on Edward Snowden at a Progressive policy conference, was instrumental in defeating the amendment to junk the NSA program.  If  Democrats  ever muster the same resolve over issues they consider crucial as does the Tea Party and, like the Tea Party,  insist on holding elected officials accountable, Pelosi should find herself facing a primary challenge in 2014 and losing.

Pelosi's sycophancy to Obama was underlined even further when Republican James Sensenbrenner, the author of the Patriot Act, under which the NSA surveillance program was created,  urged a "yes" vote on the amendment to end the program and voted that way himself.

What exposes Pelosi's political duplicity even further was,  after the amendment's defeat, and now having to face the 111 Democrats who rejected her and Obama's  arm twisting and voted to eliminate  the surveillance program, Pelosi  had the gall to send a letter to Obama which she made public expressing  her "concerns"  and "reservations"  over the surveillance program she just helped to continue,and urged Obama to consider "changes", obviously sensing she is now on the wrong side of history. There has not in recent memory been a more disingenuous and  politically dishonest Democratic leader in the House than Pelosi has become as Obama's primary sycophant in the House.And this letter written after the NSA vote proves it.

Yet, in spite of the temporary defeat and of all the many good things Snowden's revelations has accomplished in informing the American people that their private data was being collected by the government without their knowledge or consent, maybe the biggest accomplishment while he languishes in a Moscow airport,  is that it has united previous political opponents, even those who would  be called political enemies,  and unified them, not based on Republican or Democrat, conservative or  liberal, but based on being Jeffersonian, Franklin and Adams Americans whose loyalty is to the constitution first.  On the other side,  there is  Obama, Pelosi, Mike Rogers,Dianne Feinstein, Charles Schumer,  Peter King and others of both parties who  have been supporting the Surveillance State in the name of keeping people safe.  Those are the divisions related to the NSA program. The momentum is on the side of the constitutionalists.

Through it all though it is important to keep in mind the president's words,which might be true soaring rhetoric:

 

 "The privacy of citizens cannot be infringed in the name of security".

 Unfortunately those words came from the president of Brazil.

A list of all those who voted for the amendment to end the surveillance and those who voted against it are here.An  "aye" vote was for the amendment to end the NSA domestic spying program. A "no"  vote was to keep it.