A de facto repeal of the 4th Amendment?

our so-called separate-but-equal legislative branch continues to support the coup... take note, those of you who think that electing a democratic president and winning more democratic congressional seats next november will slow down the wholesale destruction of our constitution and the abrogation of our civil liberties...

House Democrats plan to introduce a bill this week that would let a secret court issue one-year "umbrella" warrants to allow the government to intercept e-mails and phone calls of foreign targets and would not require that surveillance of each person be approved individually.

ay, and there's the rub...

"Democrats have made huge strides in making improvements over the Protect America Act," said Tim Sparapani, senior legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union. "Yet we think that the Constitution requires as a minimum that an individualized warrant is required whenever an American's communications are targeted. This is going to be the big sticking point."

Democrats are wary of being called weak on national security. That concern is exacerbated by the government's withholding of details on its surveillance activities that would enable Congress to gauge whether expanded powers are needed, said Mark Agrast, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress.

< cough, cough > does this mean that congress is proposing to legislate away the 4th amendment...?

Amendment 4 - Search and Seizure

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. [emphasis added]

well, wouldn't it be a de facto repeal...? even though bush has routinely ignored the 4th amendment (very likely from his first day in office), are we now going to enshrine that un-constitutional behavior in law...?

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