The other day I posted a message I received from CREDO Action (formerly Working Assets) in regards to illegal wiretapping by the Bush Administration and legislation that would provide retroactive immunity to those phone companies that committed it.  Keep in mind that the wiretapping in question occurred before 9-11 and the Patriot Act.

Here’s an update from CREDO Action with some good news and request for more help:

Update on Illegal Wiretapping and Retroactive Immunity

Thanks to your actions, we’ve been successful in preventing the Senate from passing a wiretapping bill that grants retroactive immunity to AT&T and Verizon.

Just a little while ago, the Senate rejected attempts to rush this bill to passage, keeping alive our campaign to remove the immunity provisions. But while we’ve won the battle today, what happens later this week will determine whether the Senate will do the bidding of the White House or stand up for the Constitution. Tonight, if you watch Mr. Bush in his last State of the Union speech, be prepared to hear the fruits of your labors described as helping the terrorists — but you know better.

Action Still Needed to Block Retroactive Immunity

The privacy-invading "Protect America Act" expires on February 1st. In coming days, the Senate will debate a series of amendments to the wiretapping legislation — some good, some bad, but all of them vitally important when it comes to preserving our Constitution and upholding the rule of law. Here’s what you can do.

• If one or both of your Senators are listed below, he or she has been identified as a swing vote on telecom immunity. Time is short. You must call to make your voice heard. Please make a call to them today and tell them to oppose retroactive immunity for AT&T and Verizon, sweeping new powers for the Bush administration, and any new legislation that violates the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

  Arizona — John McCain, (202) 224-2235
  Arkansas — Blanche Lincoln, (202) 224-4843; Mark Pryor, (202) 224-2353
  California — Dianne Feinstein, (202) 224-3841
  Colorado — Ken Salazar, (202) 224-5852
  Connecticut — Joe Lieberman, (202) 224-4041
  Delaware — Thomas Carper, (202) 224-2441
  Florida — Bill Nelson, (202) 224-5274
  Georgia — Saxby Chambliss, (202) 224-3521
  Hawaii — Daniel Inouye, (202) 224-3934
  Illinois — Barack Obama, (202) 224-2854
  Indiana — Evan Bayh, (202) 224-5623
  Louisiana — Mary Landrieu, (202)224-5824
  Maine — Olympia Snowe, (202) 224-5344 and Susan Collins, (202) 224-2523
  Maryland — Barbara Mikulski, (202) 224-4654
  Michigan — Debbie Stabenow, (202) 224-4822
  Minnesota — Norm Coleman, (202) 224-5641
  Missouri — Claire McCaskill, (202) 224-6154
  Nebraska — Ben Nelson, (202) 224-6551
  New Hampshire — John Sununu, (202) 224-2841
  New York — Hillary Clinton, (202) 224-4451
  North Carolina — Elizabeth Dole, (202) 224-6342
  Oregon — Gordon Smith, (202) 224-3753
  Pennsylvania — Arlen Specter, (202) 224-4254
  South Carolina — Lindsey Graham, (202) 224-5972
  South Dakota — Tim Johnson, (202) 224-5842
  Virginia — John Warner, (202) 224-2023
  West Virginia — Robert Byrd, (202) 224-3954
  Wisconsin — Herb Kohl, (202) 224-5653

Thank you for working to build a better world.

I made my call. Will you? It’s really simple and easy. You don’t have to give any big speech or anything like that. Just say that you are calling to voice your opposition to providing retroactive immunity to the telephone companies that conducted the illegal wiretapping and that you are urging your senator to oppose any new legislation that violates the Fourth Amendment. That’s it. The person taking the call might ask for your name and address simply to confirm you are a constituent, but they won’t argue with you or give you any hassle.

If you care about preventing illegal wiretapping and other crimes by the Bush Administration, you’ll make the call.

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