They're not angry, they're just very, very disappointed. And surprised. For incisive discussion of the House Republicans who've come round to the view that maybe, just maybe, they've let the executive branch go too far, see Glenn Greenwald at Salon, "Congressional Republicans suddenly discover the need for oversight."
In the meantime, I'm indebted to Greenwald, via The Washington Post, FBI Violations May Number 3000, Report Said , for giving me my quote for the day.
Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.) expressed surprise at how widespread the use of national security letters had become, asking: "Do we have that many potential terrorists running around the country? If so, I'm really worried." He said the inspector general's report shows that "the FBI has had a gross overreach," and added that its officials "can't get away with this and expect to maintain public support for the tools that they need to combat terrorism."
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But my take on this is different. Given the expansive powers granted by the Patriot Act, I am astonished---and impressed----that there have been only 3000 violations "of the law or government policy." In the circumstances, it seems to me that they should all be praised for their restraint. After all, the purpose of giving someone a power is to allow them to exercise it, right? Did anyone other than all the Republicans in America not expect the FBI, once it was granted its shiny new tools, to play with them?
And what's 3000 violations between fellow patriots?
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