I just don’t understand who in the Bush Administration thinks this was a good idea, given the happenings today in Congress.
WASHINGTON – President Bush has quietly claimed sweeping new powers to open Americans’ mail without a judge’s warrant, the Daily News has learned.
The President asserted his new authority when he signed a postal reform bill into law on Dec. 20. Bush then issued a “signing statement” that declared his right to open people’s mail under emergency conditions.
Source: W pushes envelope on U.S. spying (NY Daily News)
I’m still amazed that someone hasn’t challenged the legality of these presidential signing statements. What is ironic (to me) is that the president attached his signing statement to the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act which “explicitly reinforced protections of first-class mail from searches without a court’s approval.”
It just makes you wonder.
The timing makes sense, it was tied to a bill approved by the previous session. In a recess. It is not Bush’s job to make people that hate him happy.
It all depends on what you consider “unreasonable”.
Amendment IV – Search and Seizure. Ratified 12/15/1791.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
The thing I find amusing about the news article are the quotes from “career senior U.S. official” and “top Senate Intelligence Committee aide”. I love that they are so confident in their opinions that they don’t want their name associated with them. This one is good too:
“Experts said the new powers could be easily abused and used to vacuum up large amounts of mail.”
There isn’t a law on the books that couldn’t be easily abused (not to mention the laws that are really abuse in and of themselves). Maybe we should stop electing people we don’t trust, if this abuse is such a problem.