Say No to Sycophantism

Less than 24 hours since news of the NSA's phone record collecting activities, we have a poll folks, by none other than our Richard Cohen-friendly folks at the WaPo. Excerpt:

"The new survey found that 63 percent of Americans said they found the NSA program to be an acceptable way to investigate terrorism, including 44 percent who strongly endorsed the effort. Another 35 percent said the program was unacceptable, which included 24 percent who strongly objected to it."

What's strange is that we're not even sure what the hell exactly IS going on at the NSA and the WaPo is already conducting polls. What's not strange however is that people, as usual, are giving responses to questions about which they have little to no idea regarding what's at stake. The collection of communications records by Executive Branch fiat is illegal, in addition to being an absolutely insane idea that goes beyond every check on government excess when it comes to communication with its own citizen.

Republican talking heads have been yelling all day that a majority of Americans support the NSA record collection, so its perfectly okay. It seems as if this Administration's poll numbers are driving these talking heads to new depths of illogic. If this country were to be run by majority opinion, then Al Gore should have been inaugurated as the POTUS in 2000 on account of winning the general popular vote. Of course we all know that Al Gore gave a concession speech in 2000 instead of an inaugural address in 2001 because we have procedures and laws, in this case the esoteric electoral college law interpreted by the SCOTUS.

If this country were to be governed by majority opinion, then medical marijuana would be legal, civil unions would be federally protected, the military would openly recruit gays, and George Bush would be impeached (if we're going to rule by polls, then it only makes sense that the power to impeach a sitting POTUS should wrest in the hands of the people and not the House).

Bottom line: Republicans in the Judiciary Committee need to develop some kahonas, conduct some damn investigations, and start issuing subpoenas left and right for everybody possibly responsible for these potentially gross breaches of law.