Intellectual Property Law

Looking Back, Moving Forward: The Continuing Fight Against Telecom Immunity

By Hugh DAndrade

The debate over telecom immunity has now spanned almost two years. When the first proposal to grant immunity to the telecoms was introduced in Congress, in September of 2006, no one thought the fight would last this long.

As we ponder the bizarre spectacle of a Congress that has willingly and repeatedly rolled over on the Bush administration's expansive claims of executive power, it is worth remembering that at one time it appeared that there would be hardly any resistance at all to the question of whether to grant immunity to the telecoms that participated in Bush's illegal warrantless wiretapping program.

Telecom immunity had the same air of inevitability that plenty of bad laws have as they sail through Congress to ultimate passage. For one thing, it was backed by powerful corporations that bankroll both parties and have armies of lobbyists patrolling Capitol Hill. The President vehemently insisted on immunity, repeatedly threatening to make use of his veto power against any FISA reform bill that didn't let his telecom friends off the hook. Republicans in Congress vowed to vote in virtual lockstep on the issue (and they were joined by key Democrats). The entire intelligence community thought it was a grand idea. And, while a few important articles appeared in major papers, the wiretapping scandal didn't generate the level of coverage it deserved. Many assumed the public to be acquiescent on the issue.

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Full post as published by Electronic Freedom Foundation - Deep Links on July 10, 2008 (boomark / email).