Salon.com > Jon B. Eisenberg

Obama’s Bush league decision

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 11:37:00 +0000

Last July and September, I recounted in Salon how, in the case of Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation Inc. v. Bush, where I am one of the plaintiffs' lawyers, government attorneys for the Bush administration had gone to extreme and even bizarre lengths to prevent the federal courts from determining the legality of President Bush's warrantless wiretapping program. The government's problem is a top-secret document that the Treasury Department accidentally disclosed to Al-Haramain, an Islamic charity in Oregon. The Treasury Department was investigating the charity in 2004 for purportedly financing terrorist activities. We believe the document confirms the surveillance of Al-Haramain and two of its lawyers as part of the 2004 investigation, and confirms their standing to sue as victims of the program, and for an adjudication of its illegality.

The truth about that “liberal” against gay marriage

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:44:00 +0000

"I'm a liberal Democrat." So began a widely circulated opinion piece by David Blankenhorn appearing in the Los Angeles Times on Sept. 19 in support of Proposition 8, an initiative on California's November 4 ballot that would eliminate the marriage rights of same-sex couples recently recognized by the California Supreme Court. The piece is entitled "Protecting Marriage to Protect Children." Blankenhorn's theme is: "It's perfectly natural to be a liberal Democrat but against gay marriage, because I am." Thus, he stakes the credibility of his position -- that marriage by same-sex couples is bad for children -- on his purported status as a "liberal Democrat."

Conservatives applauded Blankenhorn vigorously. A press release sent out Sept. 22 from Christian News Wire emphasized, "What is noteworthy is the source: the author of the Op-Ed piece is a Liberal Democrat, which underscores the broad support for Proposition 8 in order to protect marriage for society, our institutions, and for children in California." Gushed one blogger: "Frankly it's astonishing that a liberal could hold the kind of morality, honesty and insight displayed in this article and still call himself a liberal, but okay."

More evidence of Bush’s spying

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 10:20:00 +0000

For almost three years now, the Bush administration has insisted that the nation's security depends on keeping secret a part of its war on terror that was first exposed in the media back in 2005: its extralegal spying inside the United States. Bush lawyers have relied on the state secrets privilege to block numerous lawsuits challenging the administration's reported spying on Americans and others without warrants, claiming that even to acknowledge such allegations would put the country's security in jeopardy.

A cornerstone case in this legal battle is that of the Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation Inc., an Oregon-based charity group, in which there appears to be the most known evidence of such spying. And, as it turns out, one need look no further than the FBI's official Web site to find irrefutable evidence that surveillance of the group occurred -- and that the government's persistent claims of maintaining secrecy about it have been spurious.

Suing George W. Bush: A bizarre and troubling tale

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 10:59:00 +0000

On July 3, Chief Judge Vaughn Walker of the U.S. District Court in California made a ruling particularly worthy of the nation's attention. In Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation Inc. v. Bush, a key case in the epic battle over warrantless spying inside the United States, Judge Walker ruled, effectively, that President George W. Bush is a felon.

Judge Walker held that the president lacks the authority to disregard the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA -- which means Bush's warrantless electronic surveillance program was illegal. Whether Bush will ultimately be held accountable for violating federal law with the program remains unclear. Bush administration lawyers have fought vigorously -- at times using brazen, logic-defying tactics -- to prevent that from happening. The court battle will continue to play out as Congress continues to battle over recasting FISA and possibly granting immunity to telecom companies involved in the illegal surveillance.