Earlier today, Barack Obama's campaign released an unequivocal statement on telecom immunity:
"To be clear: Barack will support a filibuster of any bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies."
That is clear, and welcome.
Hillary Clinton is now the lone holdout among presidential candidates in the Senate, hedging on whether she will support a filibuster of any bill that contains retroactive immunity rather than just maybe one specific one. Bill Richardson isn't in the Senate so he can only issue a statement, but he came out with a strong one:
"Like most of his promises, President Bush's inauguration day pledge to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution has been folded away and forgotten. From torture to secret prisons and wiretapping, this administration systematically has stripped away or ignored many of the most basic rights and principles upon which this nation was founded.
"This unprecedented assault on American laws and values, cloaked falsely and irresponsibly in the guise of national security, must be stopped.
"Incredibly, the Senate stands on the verge of abetting another Presidential outrage by considering a bill that would grant immunity to telecommunications companies that admitted to assisting the government in spying on American citizens by disclosing personal information. This bill must not pass.
This bill must not pass. As the leader in polls for the Democratic presidential nomination, Hillary Clinton's voice is crucial. As a senator, her vote is crucial. We need to know where she stands.
As Atrios wrote this afternoon:
For the ones who actually hold office I've been much more interested in what they do as officeholders than what they do as candidates. They all say they're great leaders, but some of them currently have the office, stature, and especially for Clinton and Obama, the hefty soapbox from which they can actually ... lead. They have the power to take something which is an issue right now and run with it, instead of thinking about all the wonderfully yummy things they'll do... if they win... 15 months from now.
Clinton Presidential: (703) 469-2008
Clinton Senate: (202) 224-4451
