A Stitch in Haste

No fan of Senate Minority leader Harry Reid am I, but the White House has become just plain silly (or just plain desperate) in this attempted fisking of Reid's claim that the warrantless wiretap scandal is "domestic spying" --

--Domestic Calls are calls inside the United States. International Calls are calls either to or from the United States.

--Domestic Flights are flights from one American city to another. International Flights are flights to or from the United States.

--Domestic Mail consists of letters and packages sent within the United States. International Mail consists of letters and packages sent to or from the United States.

--Domestic Commerce involves business within the United States. International Commerce involves business between the United States and other countries.

Okay, but when one American spouse batters another American spouse while on vacation overseas, that's still "domestic violence." What's your point?

Eavesdropping on an American in America is domestic eavesdropping, regardless of where the other end of the conversation is located. Just how dumb does the White House think the American people are?

And keep in mind that, for some of us at least, it's not the wiretapping per se or the even the "domestic" part that really angers us. It's the warrantless, stupid. If you know that the "international" end of the call is al Qaeda, or even if you only have probable cause to think the "international" end of the call might be al Qaeda, then bravo, well done, you are a true defender of America ... now get a warrant, even if it's just a retroactive warrant (like the President originally said we were doing).

More thoughts at Whatever It Is, I’m Against It.