Hoekstra's worn out FISA talking point

Here we go again Pete says...

the flawed bill has no liability protections for patriotic companies that may have heeded the government’s request to help protect the nation at its time of greatest need.

Bush says:

that he will not sign the bill if it does not give retroactive immunity to U.S. telecommunications companies that helped conduct electronic surveillance without court orders.

Pete says:

“By not including retroactive liability protection,” said Representative Peter Hoekstra of Michigan, ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, “Democrats are trying to resolve their differences with the administration on the backs of patriotic American companies that only wanted, and continue to want, to help keep our nation safe.”

From August of this year in an interview with Paul Gigot for Wall Street Journal's: Journal Editorial Report:

"These are companies who were doing the patriotic thing....They were helping the U.S. government, the American people, get the information that we believe we needed to keep us safe. They voluntarily participated, and now that the program is exposed, they've been open to all kinds of lawsuits."

They broke the law. Even though the clowns in power asked them to do it. That doesn't make it OK.

I did find this wonderful little snippet from his press release though:

"It could open a door for massive civil liberties violations by Congress.."

Pardon my language but since when has Pete Hoekstra even given a sh*t about our civil liberties??? Trick question...He doesn't. It's a classic political trick of attacking your opponent's strong suit. I'm not buying it, and I sure as hell hope you aren't either.

Links to other stories on the same thing:
Michael Roston at Huffington Post
Declan McCullagh at CNET News

As state shutdown looms Pete weighs in...sort of

Showing his solidarity to the republicans in the Michigan legislature Hoekstra issued this press release In which he states:

"..raising taxes in Michigan is the wrong solution for a state that leads the nation in unemployment and businesses and families are leaving for better economic environments in other parts of the country."

So what does Hoekstra think will fix the budget? What does he think will work? Ummmm, yeah that's the problem, he doesn't say anything. No ideas to help the state he represents. Just more posturing, and no real ideas. Pete is a reel that just plays over and over and over.

Meanwhile we face a state government shutdown. Here's what will happen (hat tip to LiberalLucy)

AGRICULTURE: All Department of Agriculture activities will stop during a government shutdown, except livestock vehicle inspections at the Mackinac Bridge, which are required to maintain the Upper Peninsula's Tuberculosis-free designation for cattle. During the shutdown, food safety inspections, recall effectiveness checks, gas pump inspections, animal disease monitoring, and migrant labor camp inspections will stop; agriculture export and cattle movement permits will not be issued; and horse racing will shutdown. Exports from Michigan to foreign countries would essentially cease should state government shut down. Commodities affected include dry beans, logs and lumber, nursery stock, grain, fruits, and vegetables.

THE COURTS: The Michigan Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals will continue to operate with a limited staff to handle emergency matters.

CIVIL RIGHTS: All Department of Civil Rights activities will stop during a government shutdown. Residents wishing to file a discrimination complaint will be able to leave a message at 1-800-482-3604 with the details of their complaint. For purposes of meeting the 180-day legal requirement, the message will constitute an official notice of the intention to file a complaint. Residents calling Civil Right's Crisis Response Hotline to report a hate crime or bias incident may also leave a message, although they are encouraged to contact local law enforcement for immediate assistance.

COMMUNITY HEALTH: A number of operations within the Department of Community Health will be maintained to ensure that the health of our citizens is protected. State mental health facilities will remain open with reduced staffing, though involuntary, non-court admissions will be suspended. Critical laboratory services will operate to ensure newborn screenings are completed in a timely manner, and threats of immediate harm can be addressed. Limited Medicaid support will be available to approve emergency medical prior-authorizations and review exception requests for medications and medical procedures. The DCH also will maintain the toll-free number to register nursing home complaints of a serious nature.

CORRECTIONS: Department of Corrections functions will continue as needed to protect the safety of Michigan citizens. The state's prisons, prison camps, and parole/probation monitoring will continue to operate, though at a reduced staffing level. Administrative operations outside of the prisons will shut down.

EDUCATION: All Department of Education operations will shut down, except for the Michigan School for the Deaf. If Department of Education employees have not returned to work by mid-October, the state school aid payment due on October 22 will not be made.

ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY: The Department of Environmental Quality will maintain only limited staff during the shutdown period to meet U.S. Department of Homeland Security air- monitoring requirements and process critical drinking water samples to address the most immediate public health concerns. All other department functions will shut down. This means no permits (air quality, surface water discharge, wetlands, dredging, etc.) will be processed and no environmental complaints will be received or investigated. The Pollution Emergency Alerting System will be operational, but the department will have extremely limited ability to respond to emergencies reported through that system.

HISTORY, ARTS & LIBRARIES: All Department of History, Arts and Libraries operations will shut down except security and emergency monitoring services at the Mackinac Island Airport and public areas. The Library of Michigan, the Michigan Historical Museum, and historic sites around Michigan will be closed. Mackinac Island paid admission sites will close and garbage and manure pick-up and road maintenance will cease.

HUMAN SERVICES: Critical Department of Human Services' operations will be maintained to protect the safety of children, families, and vulnerable adults. Most local offices will remain open with a small percentage of field staff on the job to respond to child protective services and adult protective services emergencies; make emergency foster care placements; and process emergency payments for evictions, lack of utilities, lack of food, etc. Cash assistance, food assistance, child day care, adoption subsidies, and foster care payments will continue, but no new applications will be processed (except for emergencies as described above). Child support payments received from non-custodial parents will be sent to families; and the state's juvenile justice facilities will operate and will be staffed to protect the safety of residents.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: A limited number of Department of Information Technology personnel will be needed to maintain state operating systems and to provide technical support for those services that will continue.

LABOR & ECONOMIC GROWTH: The majority of Department of Labor & Economic Growth operations will be shut down. Most of the unemployment insurance agencies will be closed, however, unemployment checks will continue to be processed and new applications can be made over the phone or via the Internet. In addition, the Michigan Career & Technical Institute in Plainwell and the Michigan Commission for the Blind Training Center in Kalamazoo will continue to provide education and training for disabled individuals.

LOTTERY & GAMING: Lottery sales will end at the close of business on September 30, 2007. Players will not be able to purchase or redeem winning tickets. Minimal staff will maintain drawings due to the advance sale of tickets. State gaming inspectors will be idled as well, forcing the state-licensed casinos in Detroit to close.

MANAGEMENT & BUDGET: A limited number of Department of Management and Budget personnel will maintain state-owned buildings.

MICHIGAN STATE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY: The Michigan State Housing Development Authority will be closed during shutdown and all operations will stop.

MILITARY & VETERANS AFFAIRS: The MVA State Finance and State Human Resource offices will be closed. The state's two veterans' homes in Grand Rapids and Marquette will continue operating with reduced staffing but will maintain the minimum staffing as required by law. The Youth Challenge Program will also remain operational but with minimum staff. Feeding and education will be provided by the Battle Creek Public Schools, an established partner of the Challenge Program. The state's 44 National Guard armories, six National Guard training sites, and National Guard administrative offices are federally funded and will remain open.

NATURAL RESOURCES: All DNR operations will be shut down, except a minimal crew to maintain the state's six fish hatcheries and a small contingent of forest firefighters needed to continue containment operations at the Sleeper Lakes fire in the Upper Peninsula and to respond to other fire emergencies. Shutdown will require that all state parks, recreation areas, DNR visitor centers and state forest campgrounds be closed, including day use areas. Citizens with camping reservations at a state park or recreation area during the duration of the shutdown will be eligible for a refund. The sale of hunting and fishing licenses may be delayed if technical problems with the state server prevent processing, and gated boat access sites will not be accessible. In addition, timber will not be marked for sale or sold. The archery deer season set to open on October 1 will proceed, however, deer check stations will not be operating.

SECRETARY OF STATE: Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land has indicated that branch offices will be closed during the shutdown. Online or mail transactions will not be processed, as well.

STATE POLICE: The Michigan State Police will continue to protect Michigan citizens during shutdown. Though all MSP posts will be closed to the public, a limited number of troopers will be maintained to provide critical law enforcement services across the state. Administrative and specialized operations will be curtailed, resulting in the cessation of crime lab services, commercial vehicle enforcement, drug and criminal investigations, detective services, disaster assistance, and casino gaming oversight.

TRANSPORTATION: All road construction, routine maintenance, and administrative operations will stop. The state's rest areas will be closed. In addition, six of the state's lift bridges, in compliance with U.S. Coast Guard regulations, will be locked in the up position, allowing only water traffic to pass. Those bridges are located in Manistee, Bay City, St Joseph, Port Huron and Detroit. The Mackinac Bridge, the International Bridge, and Blue Water Bridge will remain operational.

TREASURY: Department of Treasury operations, including student loan disbursements and financial aid payments, the Michigan Education Trust, and the Michigan Education Savings Plan programs would cease during a shutdown. Revenue sharing payments to local units of government will be delayed if the shutdown continues through mid-October. A limited number of staff would be maintained to process critical payments, including cash assistance, unemployment benefits, and debt service.

Updates and FAQ can be found here.

This blog has always been about Pete Hoekstra, but this is of great importance to all of us in Michigan. If Pete doesn't have a reasonable solution to move this state forward, then he should worry about his busy schedule carrying the water for Bush in Washington.

As election season nears, Pete sings a new song

It just has some of the same old lyrics as reported by the Associated Press and Detroit Free Press (ugghh...yeah I know).

In 2004 and 2005 Hoekstra was fully behind the war and the policy set forth by Bush & Co. Pete changed his talking points to "islamofascists" and Islamic Jihaadists in the months following the surge debate so he could justify the war on his terms. Not on the merits of it's supposed reasoning (that he originally supported).

"The U.S. effort to install a democracy in Iraq within three to five years was a flawed strategy with little chance of succeeding"

He's just realizing this now? No, it's a ploy. He wants to distance himself from the Bush administration (and has been taking potshots at them for about 6 months) without actually changing his stance on the war. Apparently we are all supposed to be impressed that he said what intelligent people were thinking from he beginning of the war. Just remember, if his lips are moving he's probably lying.

Hoekstra, the ranking Republican on the House Select Committee on Intelligence, said as the Iraqi government flounders, he’s changed his original support for the Bush administration’s stated goal of molding a democratic Iraq as a means to stabilize the Middle East. But Hoekstra said he opposes setting a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops. He said Congress and President George W. Bush must decide on a unified course of action that will stabilize Iraq, based on new intelligence reports and a much-anticipated September status report by the U.S. top commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus.

Of course he opposes the withdrawl of troops. Maybe he wants to explain to the troops what they are there for now. Can we call do-overs?

And just because he can (and maybe has to, I think it's a tick, he just can't help himself) he throws this into the piece:

Radical Islam remains a real threat to the United States, he said, and that Islamic jihadists are using U.S. presence in Iraq for recruiting propaganda.

All the more reason to stay.Right Pete??

Hoekstra versus New York Times Part 2

There's a lot more to this letter to pick apart.

The only real basis for “fear” here is the scare tactics being perpetuated by the Times

But in the next paragraph there is this veiled idea by Hoekstra

First, the legislation was intended to address significant and substantial intelligence gaps that have arisen at a time of enhanced threat of terrorist attack on the United States. The need for the bill was urgent and obvious.

I'm sorry, no one told me to change my Crayola Terror-Meter up to red. I could swear this would be considered "fear mongering". Wait, no, that must be a media source that doesn't agree with you, right?

It is unfortunate that you choose to compound those difficulties with further politicization, fear-mongering, and the suggestion that we simply dismiss the increased threats to American citizens at home and abroad.

Right.

Politicizing- Here's Pete's chance to speak his piece on the SCHIP bill.
Hmm...all he talks about is FISA.
Or the Implementing the 9/11 Commission Bill.
FISA.
Responsible Redeployment From Iraq Act?
FISA... with a heapin' helpin' of radical jihadists thrown in just for good measure.

Hoekstra can spin it any way he wants. We dismiss the increased threats. We don't believe that "radical jihadists" really hate us and want to attack us. I can go on, and on, and on. Just because Hoekstra, Bush or any other neo-con hack keeps pissing in your ears the same worn out catch phrases doesn't mean they are right. It just means they really want something.

Like your civil liberties. For starters...

Hoekstra says telecomms' wiretapping involvement is "Patriotic"?

Here's the link to the story.

So... We were all bummed that the Dems caved and passed this legislation. We thought "Hey, at least it's only 6 months." Well, if Shrub and Hoekstra have their way it will only get worse. Here's what the preznit wants:

"When Congress returns in September the Intelligence committees and leaders in both parties will need to complete work on the comprehensive reforms requested by Director McConnell, including the important issue of providing meaningful liability protection to those who are alleged to have assisted our Nation following the attacks of September 11, 2001,"

WOW that's vague! So what he's saying is that we know what they did is unconstitutional, so we're not admitting they did anything illegal, but we want to go reverse in the way back machine and make it legal before we say they did it. Riiiiight.

But our intrepid Congresscritter has something to say in an interview with Paul Gigot for Wall Street Journal's: Journal Editorial Report on Saturday night:

"These are companies who were doing the patriotic thing....They were helping the U.S. government, the American people, get the information that we believe we needed to keep us safe. They voluntarily participated, and now that the program is exposed, they've been open to all kinds of lawsuits."

(read as:voluntarily broke the law)

Patriotic! 9/11! Terror! Terror!

Parrot Pete says following passage of the bill:

"he would use momentum from Congressional Republicans’ efforts to fix FISA to push for comprehensive reform of the law to...obtain retroactive liability for parties who may have aided the government."

Thanks Pete, I wasn't using my civil liberties anyway...

What the ACLU thinks about the FISA program.