Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., has suggested that anyone who questions the controversial National Security Agency programs is ignorant. He laid into critics of the wiretapping and phone records programs Thursday for “making denouncements and condemnations on subjects about which they know little to nothing.”
But as our editorial Friday noted, “Saying the NSA program is lawful still does not make it so, especially when so many legal experts beg to differ. And it does not suffice for Roberts to promise that his committee ‘has been, and will continue, exercising its oversight responsibilities related to the NSA’ — not when the committee’s own members have publicly suggested otherwise.”
Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., has a better approach: Have a court oversee the programs, letting “the public know the law is being followed and complied with, not just on the word of any one administration.”
Posted by Melissa Cooley
As part of the ongoing immigration debate, the U.S. Senate on Thursday approved two different provisions on English, one making English the “national language,” the other calling it the “common and unifying language” of the nation.
If the intent is mainly to send the message that immigrants need to learn English, fine. Message received. But such “speak English” resolutions, besides sounding ugly and overly paranoid (is the dominance of English really threatened in America?), distract from more pressing problems, such as workplace compliance and employee ID verification.
In another effort this week to placate “enforcement only” Republicans, the Senate approved some 370 miles of triple-layer wall along the southern border.
Beyond the negative symbolism, many border security experts think such walls are a waste of money and will do little to stop immigrants — think tunnels.
What do you think?
Posted by Randy Scholfield
If there’s anything that brings out the whining and griping in Wichitans, it’s Riverfest. Five bucks for nine full days of entertainment and events? What an outrage!
As a public service, I tried in my column Friday to address the petty complaints and kvetching and send everyone home happy, or at least with a free coupon for deep-fried lard nuggets at the food court.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
As president of the National Urban League, Marc Morial isn’t in a position to endorse a candidate in today’s mayoral runoff in New Orleans. But he has strong feelings about post-Katrina New Orleans both in his current role and as a former two-term New Orleans mayor. “I governed well,” Morial told The Eagle editorial board Thursday, calling the lateness of the evacuation the “biggest mistake” made, on top of the failure to adequately provide for the shelters’ needs. But it was “the perfect storm of delay,” he said, noting the response and recovery problems involved all levels of government. He also wishes the Bush administration had heeded the Urban League’s call for a Sept. 11-style victims’ compensation fund and a singular Gulf Coast authority to oversee reconstruction. The latter idea especially seems preferable to the haphazard rebuilding effort so far.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
