CREEPING COUP

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CHERTOFF, LIEBERMAN CALLS FOR MORE WIRETAPS ON AMERICANS

PROGRESS REPORT - Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) used the foiled terror
attempts in London to call for greater domestic spying in the United
States. "I hope these terrorist attacks in London wake us up here in
America to stop the petty partisan fighting going on about. . .
electronic surveillance," Lieberman said, referencing the Senate
Judiciary Committee's recent subpoenas of documents related to Bush's
wiretapping program. On Fox and Friends, Homeland Security Secretary
Michael Chertoff echoed Lieberman's call, arguing that Lieberman was
"dead right" in calling for increased domestic surveillance: "I'm
concerned about losing the tools that I can tell you we use every single
day to catch the kind of plotting which we've just seen. . . I think
Joe Lieberman is dead right." But British surveillance did not prevent
the London attacks. In fact, "there had been no prior intelligence of
planned attacks from the terror organization." Instead, vigilant London
residents helped prevent the bombings by alerting authorities after
noticing suspicious activity such as the smell of smoke and gasoline.

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