Boyda continues to win FISA war of words

The story that just keeps getting better and better for Congresswoman Nancy Boyda- her courageous stand on FISA is garnering her even more press this week than it did last.

First, another newspaper piece, this time in the Leavenworth Times:

"I am adamant about protecting the Constitution. They're giving nothing in return for it. We're not getting any more security and they're shredding the Constitution," said U.S. Rep. Nancy Boyda, D-Second Dist.

The fourth amendment to the Constitution protects Americans from unreasonable search and seizure, requiring probable cause for issuing search warrants.

[...]

"What shocks me is how members of Congress from Kansas would so readily give up 230 years of our Constitution without gaining any additional security," Boyda said.

It shocks all of us, too, Nancy- and it's clear everyday Kansans are shocked, too, that the Republicans in Congress and the President would willfully throw out our Constitution in order to save the telephone companies some money.

Boyda pointed out that Congress is being asked to give phone companies immunity without knowing why they need immunity. "The question is why the president is completely unwilling to tell Congress what he did," Boyda said. "It seems to me it's probably about domestic surveillance."

[...]

Despite her objections to the Senate Bill, Boyda acknowledges wiretapping and conducting terrorist surveillance is "job number-one," but cannot compromise civil liberties.

She said FISA was adopted to safeguard the rights of Americans, not to protect terrorists.

"Keeping America and Americans safe is my number-one priority," Boyda said.

She cautioned that despite many Americans having no objection to wiretapping because they have nothing to hide, the stake of American democracy is hanging in the balance.

"If you are willing to have the government come into your home and into your personal life without any probable cause and without any oversight or any warrant, then you have just given up our democracy," Boyda said.

In 1759, Benjamin Franklin wrote, "They that give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."

It's so clear Boyda's position on this issue is the winning one, but the other side continues to attack her on it, hoping the message of fear will win the day. Today the Topeka Capital-Journal ran a letter to the editor from Christian Morgan, the Executive Director of the Kansas GOP. Christian isn't creative, so he just repeated all of the same, tired rebuttals you've all already heard. Our friends over at Blue Tide Rising did a superb job taking Mr. Morgan down a notch, and we thank them for it.

Congresswoman Boyda also had a letter in the Cap-J today, counter Mr. Morgan- please, partake (and make sure to read the comments).

Finally, we're going to do something we've yet to do here on BoydaBloc- we're going to ask you to send Congresswoman Boyda a donation- through one of the two different ActBlue accounts that have been set up to allow us to help defend members of Congress who, along with Nancy Boyda, voted the right way on this version of FISA:

ActBlue: Help Nancy Boyda Fight Back or ActBlue: Fight FISA.

Even though Boyda's right on this issue, the forces who want to tear our Constitution to shreds- and who want to scare you to death so you'll let them- aren't going to stop just because a pesky thing like "fact" gets in the way. Call Nancy Boyda and tell her she's doing the right thing.