Except tearing up the Constitution

George Bush, July 2005

We're working tirelessly to protect the American people and to prevent new terrorists attacks. In an age of new dangers, we're doing everything in our power to do our jobs.

[Many other examples]

Al Gonzales' US Department of Justice, yesterday:

Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales on Monday ordered a side-by-side review of American and British counterterrorism laws as a first step toward determining whether further changes in American law are warranted ... "The attorney general has committed to a review to evaluate and compare the terrorism laws in the United Kingdom with those in the United States," said Brian Roehrkasse, a department spokesman. "Any changes to our existing terrorism laws would only be considered after extensive review and discussion to ensure that such a change would be necessary, appropriate and constitutional."

To state the obvious, the previous claim that the government was doing everything within its power to combat terrorism was not based on an elementary comparison with laws in other countries? Incidentally, from the same New York Times article linked above comes more evidence against last week's supposed timeline whereby the Republicans decided to make the week about terrorism and only found out late on Wednesday about the Heathrow liquid bomb blot:

In the days leading up to the announcement last week that Britain had foiled such a plot, the F.B.I. deployed several hundred agents to run down any American connections, and the Justice Department sought double or triple the usual rate of court-approved wiretaps to monitor the communications of American suspects, the officials said.

So they had enough advance notice of the plot that they had time to work through those pesky court approved surveillance procedures that they hate so much.