Surreal, indeed

Before Senator Cornyn launched into an attack on John Dean at this morning's censure hearings, the Boot Full of Hammers showed us all how much his finger is on the pulse of America:

I think the American people would be also justified in thinking that the atmosphere in Washington D.C. is surreal when it comes to the GWOT and how we conduct our business and how we spend our time. While there were those who initially expressed some doubt as to the legality of the president's actions and his authority, you have conducted a number of different hearings including with some judges who serve on the FISA Court. The Chairman has noted a number of circuit court opinions which have reached the same conclusion that many of those judges did and that is the president's authority is not exclusively derived by a statutory grant from Congress under the FISA act. And that would be a very strange proposition to argue that one branch of the government is somehow limited by a grant of authority from another branch when in fact each derive their powers by the Constitution itself.

And no one, to my knowledge, has suggested that this program be stopped. Sen. Sessions mentioned that a number of people have been briefed on this program. I agree it should not be stopped. It's saving American lives and it's allowing us to fight and win the GWOT. And it would be ironic indeed if the Congress were to pass an authorization for the use of military force and say that we ought to locate and detain -- capture and detain and even kill the enemy, but we can't listen to their telephone calls that come from overseas to the United States. That is, I think, contributes to the surreal atmosphere.

Yes, sitting here worrying about my civil liberties while a Senator graces an important hearing with five minutes of his presence and then spends it talking about "ironic" hypotheticals concerning a situation he just finished mentioning that nobody is endorsing... Yes, that's "surreal."

(image swiped from Wonkette)