Show Gore says Bush broke the law with spying Chris Cillizza Special to The Washington Post Former Vice President Al AI Gore accused President Bush of breaking the law by authorizing wiretaps on US U.S. citizens citizens citizens citi citi- zens without court warrants and called on Congress Monday to reassert its oversight oversight oversight over over- sight responsibilities on a shameful exercise ex of power by the White House The president of the United States has hase been e n breaking bre ng the law repeatedly and insistently Gore said in a speech at atCon Constitution Con Hall in Washington A president who breaks the law is a threat to the very structure of our government govern govern- ment ment To restore a system of of o checks a balances t to government a Gore pro- pro appointing a ar special counsel coun coup counsel r sel eto to look into the Former Vice Pres domestic sur- sur AI Gore program program program pro pro- gram developing new whistle-blower whistle protections ions and not extending th the Patriot Act He urged members of Congress only one of whom whom Sen Dianne Feinstein D was D was present to start acting like the independent and coequal branch of government youre you're supposed s pp s d to tob be he b e. e On the holiday marking the birthday birthday birthday birth birth- day of the Rev Martin Luther King Jr Gore drew a parallel between bet een the FBI's eavesdropping on the c civil vil rights leader the and the current eavesdropping by National Security Agency on communications communications communications between Americans and what Bush has said are suspected terrorists He also sought to cast the domestic surveillance program as simply the latest Gore Cont on Page 6 Gore t Cont Cant from front extension of a truly breathtaking expansion of executive power bythe by bythe bythe the Bush administration Gore said this began when the White WhiteHouse WhiteHouse WhiteHouse House used incorrect intelligence about whether Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction to justify invading it and has continued continued continued contin contin- through the Abu pris pris- oner-abuse oner scandal and the debate over whether torture may be used to extract information from detainees The disrespect embodied in these apparent mass violations of the law is part of a larger pattern of seeming indifference to the Constitution that is deeply troubling troubling troubling trou trou- bling to Amer Americans cans in both political 1 r cal parties G re said The Bush administrations administration's actions have brought our republic to the brink of a dangerous breach in the fabric of the Con Constitution he added While Gores Gore's denunciation of the administrations administration's domestic surveillance surveillance sur sur- program drew cheers cheers' from the crowd at the event sponsored sponsored sponsored spon spon- by the Liberty Coalition and the American Constitution Society national public polling shows that Americans remain divided on the issue i |