The Administration’s response to my speech illustrates perfectly the
need for a special counsel to review the legality of the NSA wiretapping
program. The Attorney General is making a political defense of the
President without even addressing the substantive legal questions that have
so troubled millions of Americans in both political parties.

There are two problems with the Attorney General’s effort to focus
attention on the past instead of the present Administration’s behavior.
First, as others have thoroughly documented, his charges are factually
wrong. Both before and after the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act was
amended in 1995, the Clinton/Gore Administration complied fully and
completely with the terms of the law.

Second, the Attorney General’s attempt to cite a previous
administration’s activity as precedent for theirs - even though factually
wrong - ironically demonstrates another reason why we must be so vigilant
about their brazen disregard for the law. If unchecked, their behavior
would serve as a precedent to encourage future presidents to claim these
same powers, which many legal experts in both parties believe are clearly
illegal.

The issue, simply put, is that for more than four years, the executive
branch has been wiretapping many thousands of American citizens without
warrants in direct contradiction of American law. It is clearly wrong and
disrespectful to the American people to allow a close political associate
of the president to be in charge of reviewing serious charges against him.

The country needs a full and independent investigation into the facts
and legality of the present Administration’s program.