Townhall.com, Where Your Opinion Counts
Talk Radio:   Bill Bennett   Mike Gallagher   Dennis Prager   Michael Medved   Hugh Hewitt   
BREAKING NEWS  LeftArrow - Townhall.com : Conservative, Political, Republican   RightArrow - Townhall.com : Conservative, Political, Republican  
Columns, funnies & more in your inbox!
Login | What's Hot
  • Check the boxes and send us your email address to receveive your free newsletter
  • Your daily must-read of conservative columns, cartoons and news. Coulter, Sowell, Krauthammer and more.
  • Townhall.com’s weekly inside scoop on what’s happening behind the scenes in the world of politics. When news breaks, we report.
  • Signup to receive the latest daily Townhall cartoons
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Amanda Carpenter :: Townhall.com Columnist
Obama, Hillary, Dems Take FISA Trial Lawyer Cash
by Amanda Carpenter
Forward Print Share Single Page
Vote on It:
Average Vote:
[+] Text [-]
 
 
Poll
Will the Dems' health care Christmas Present to America be an improvement or detriment to our health care system?


Sen. Barack Obama (D.-Ill.), who is in the running for the Democratic nomination, was given $28,650 from trial lawyers listed as counsel for plaintiffs who are suing those companies becuase they turned over phone records as a part of President Bush’s covert phone surveillance program. $19,150 of that was donated in the last year.

Sen. Hillary Clinton (D.-N.Y), the other main contender for the Democratic presidential bid, also accepted money from trial lawyers on the case. Records show those lawyers have poured $34,800 to her and her husband’s campaigns over the years. $12,150 of those donations were made to her within the last year.

The other 22 senators who opposed the amendment and have taken similar donations are: Joe Biden (Del.), Barbara Boxer (Calif.), Maria Cantwell (Wash.), Ben Cardin (M.D.), Chris Dodd (Conn.), Byron Dorgan (N.D.), Dick Durbin (Ill.), Russ Feingold (Wisc.), Teddy Kennedy (Mass.), John Kerry (Mass.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Frank Lautenberg (N.J.), Patrick Leahy (Vt.), Carl Levin (Mich.) Robert Menendez (N.J.), Patty Murray (Wash.), Jack Reed (R.I.), Harry Reid (Nev.) Charles Schumer (N.Y.), Debbie Stabenow (Mich.), Jon Tester (Mont.) and Ron Wyden (Ore.).

Clinton did not vote Tuesday because she was campaigning. She has, however, voted against granting telephone companies immunity and other FISA reforms in the past.

Since 1997, Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D.-Nev.) accepted donations from three lawyers working the FISA case that amount to $10,000. The No.2 Democrat in the Senate, Dick Durbin, who is charged with whipping votes, has accepted $18,350 from 1996 through 2007 from lawyers listed as counsel against phone companies.

Now that FISA has been reauthorized in the Senate, the bill was sent over to the House where an effort to strip the immunity provision is expected. House Republicans are pressuring House Democrats to pass the Senate version of the bill quickly, as it is scheduled to expire on Saturday.

Records show that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D.-Calif.) accepted $3,750 in donations to her campaigns and PACs from these lawyers from 1996-2001.

1 2
| Full Article & Comments | < Previous
Share:
Forward Print Single Page
Vote on It:
Average Vote:
 
About The Author
Amanda Carpenter is the author of “The Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy's Dossier on Hillary Clinton,” published in October 2006.
 
TOWNHALL DAILY: Be the first to read Amanda Carpernter. Sign up today and receive Townhall.com daily lineup delivered each morning to your inbox.

Join The Debate!

Post Your Comment
(29 comments so Far)
View in ascending order     View in descending order
Reply # 1
Date: Feb 15, 2008 - 6:44 PM EST
ltjake1286
"...the charge the author of this column makes is laughable. Democrats oppose telecom immunity because they believe in the bedrock principle that this country was founded on-- the rule of law".

Dimocrats believe in the rule of law? That outrageous assertion is EVEN MORE laughable.

There are far too many examples to even begin to illustrate, starting with legislative rule-bending by the Party of NO to thwart even the most basic of processes.

Selective belief in the 'rule of law', at best.

Halliburton, Halliburton, Bush, Bush, FISA, FISA, Iraq, Iraq...will the obsessive drum beat ever stop?

Only if we suffer another 911 - briefly - then a new set of catch-phrase dum*ss drug-addled hippy-educated generation of lib cast-offs will begin the new set-to against whomever.

'Safe' and 'not attacked' are functionally the same thing. The details I leave to the protectors.

Some things are not meant to be known by average citizens. Or the media.

If one can be prosecuted for merely mentioning the name of a spy who really isn't, then a turncoat in intelligence who reveals how and when what tools are being used, and by whom, such leakers should be prosecuted for treason.

There's your 'rule of law'.
Flag as Offensive

Reply # 2
Date: Feb 15, 2008 - 3:24 PM EST
Immunity more important than the law
Wingnuts have the balls to suggest this desire to sue telecoms is a Democrat conspiracy fueled by lawyer funding. Well then, consider the lead plaintiffs’ counsel in the telecom suits is the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a donor-funded, NON-profit organization. If they were motivated by profit, pursuing these extremely time consuming lawsuits would be the last thing they would be doing.

It’s not about suing the telecoms into bankruptcy, either — it’s about having the sword of justice hanging over them so they will reveal how deep the rabbit hole goes — which journalists, legislators, activists, et al, were considered “terrorism suspects by this crooked, lawbreaking administration. I remember when wingers shouted “Rule of Law!” when a guy lied about sex.
Flag as Offensive
Sign Up to Post Your CommentsSign Up to Post Your Comments
If you are already registered, click here to login. Otherwise, please take a few seconds to register with Townhall.com. Once you sign up, you’ll be able to post your comments immediately, use the action center, get podcasts, and more!
Note: Fields marked with a red asterisk (*) are required.
Salutation:
First Name:
*
Last Name:
*
Email:
*
Nickname:
*
Note: Nick name will be shown when you post comments.
Address 1:
*
Address 2:
City:
 *
State:
 *
Zip:
 *
Phone:
       
Your daily must-read of conservative columns, cartoons and news. Coulter, Sowell, Krauthammer and more.
(Bi-Weekly) We highlight the best opportunities from our partners for surveys, action items and more.