Civil Liberties?

[Steve Poling]

I just read a blog on National Review's website about the Amber Alert bill currently 
pending. The bottom line is that when you're talking about the erosion of civil liberties, 
this isn't a Left (vs) Right thing. And it isn't restricted to the Patriot Act, but 
mischief is often proposed under the label of "saving children."

http://www.nationalreview.com/thecorner/corner.asp

RAVE [Dave Kopel]
Senator Joe Biden (D-Del.) has been pushing a civil liberties disaster called the "RAVE 
Act," as I detailed a several weeks ago. Very strong grassroots opposition has stalled the 
Biden bill in Congress. It has not passed a single committee. So now, Biden is attempting 
to put the RAVE Act onto the conference committee version of the Amber Alert bill (S. 
151), regarding abuducted children. According to the Drug Policy Alliance, Biden is 
incorrectly claiming that the ACLU no longer opposes his bill. The popular Amber Alert 
bill is in very serious danger of being taken over as a vehicle for oppressive laws which 
can't make it through the legislative process on their own merits when exposed to public 
scrutiny. The House version of the Amber bill includes a particularly repressive measure 
having nothing to do with missing children: the Feeney Amendment destroys most disrection 
of federal judges to impose downward departures under the federal sentencing guidelines. 
The discretion would be transferred to prosecutors--a serious violation of the principle 
of separation of powers, based on a draconian and unjust insistence that the failed 
federal drug war must never waver from imposing major sentences on minor actors.
Posted at 03:37 PM