At the time, the Republicans controlling Congress blocked all oversight of the president. Their idea of a solution was to retroactively legalize the program. The minority Democrats meanwhile, fearful of losing votes by challenging a president whose approval ratings were in the mid 30's, tried to pretend Russ Feingold didn't exist.
Today, Senator Feingold has renewed his call for censure, citing mismanagement of the Iraq war and the assault on the rule of law.
U.S. Senator Russ Feingold announced today that he will introduce two censure resolutions condemning the President, Vice President and other administration officials for misconduct relating to the war in Iraq and for their repeated assaults on the rule of law. Feingold called the resolutions appropriate and necessary steps for Congress to rebuke an administration that is responsible for some of the worst misconduct and the worst abuses of the law in American history.
The first resolution will condemn the President and others for misconduct relating to the war in Iraq including:
* Overstating the case that Saddam Hussein had WMD, particularly nuclear weapons, and falsely implying a relationship with al Qaeda and links to 9/11.
* Failing to plan for the civil conflict and humanitarian problems that the intelligence community predicted.
* Over-stretching the Army, Marine Corps and Guard with prolonged deployments.
* Justifying our military involvement in Iraq by repeatedly distorting the situation on the ground there.
The second resolution will focus on the administration’s attack on the rule of law with respect to, among other things:
* The illegal NSA warrantless wiretapping program.
* Extreme policies on torture, the Geneva Conventions, and detainees at Guantanamo.
* The refusal to recognize legitimate congressional oversight into the improper firings of U.S. Attorneys.
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