They hate our freedoms?Why did the President circumvent the government and disregard those freedoms?

(Washington, DC) Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL) issued the following statement today at a Democratic Judiciary hearing, which questioned the legality of President Bush’s controversial domestic surveillance programs. The hearing focused on findings by the New York Times and other news sources, which have been corroborated by the Administration that President Bush authorized domestic spying on U.S. citizens by the National Security Agency (NSA) without court approval. In addition, Richard Hersh, director of the Truth Project, Inc. - a Lake Worth, FL based grouped targeted by the Pentagon through a secret program "Talon," which has spied on "peaceful anti-war and counter-military recruitment groups," testified at the hearing:

"Like many Americans I was shocked and appalled to learn that our nation’s intelligence and military agencies have been spying on Americans at an unprecedented level without even the opportunity for legally required judicial oversight. I am deeply disturbed that the Republican leadership in Congress is turning a blind eye to these developments. And I am proud that Ranking Member Conyers and my fellow Judiciary Democrats refuse to let this silence stand unanswered.

"I am eager to hear from this distinguished panel because I can simply not understand how the Administration can justify brazenly skirting existing safeguards that were put in place after Watergate to deter wanton domestic spying on American citizens. It is outrageous that law-abiding Americans like the peace activists and retirees who make up the Truth Project in my congressional district are considered to be a credible threat to this country.

"A recent New York Times article confirmed my initial fear that these programs are not only a violation of these individuals’ civil liberties but also a tremendous waste of critical resources that should be employed to fight the genuine threats America faces. Instead of using one of the most far reaching invasions of privacy in our country’s history to target immediate and credible threats, the Administration is needlessly diverting the scarce time and resources of our intelligence community on wild goose chases.

"There is not a Member of Congress or an American who is not prepared to take every legal measure necessary to prevent another 9/11 from happening again; however, this is not an excuse for the Bush Administration to publicly declare by fiat that it can ignore existing law. The Administration must be held accountable by Congress, which has an unmistakable Constitutional right for oversight into these programs. If the NSA’s warrant-less searches and the DOD’s information collection on American citizens are indeed critical to our nation’s safety and security, it would be the responsibility of Congress to change the laws; the Administration cannot act alone and in secret as judge and jury for its actions.

"But this is exactly what President Bush has done. This Administration has groundlessly circumvented judicial review and taken America down a frightening path to a police state, which preys on a culture of fear while casually disregarding existing civil liberties. Now, at the very least, the American people have a right to know the full extent to which our basic rights have been violated.

"Following the September 11 attacks, the President addressed this Congress and told the American people that the terrorists hate our "democratically elected government. ... They hate our freedoms." Why then did the President circumvent this democratically elected government and disregard those very freedoms? We must discover what has been done under this misguided banner and unite to stop it."

Congressman Wexler is a senior member of the House International Relations Committee and is a member of the House Judiciary Committee.

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