John Dean Blasts Warrantless Eavesdropping

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By LAURIE KELLMAN, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Nixon White House counselor John Dean asserted Friday that President Bush's domestic spying exceeds the wrongdoing that toppled his former boss from power, and Sen. Orrin Hatch (news, bio, voting record) snapped that Democrats were trying to "score political points" with a motion to censure Bush.

"Had the Senate or House, or both, censured or somehow warned Richard Nixon, the tragedy of Watergate might have been prevented," Dean told the Senate Judiciary Committee. "Hopefully the Senate will not sit by while even more serious abuses unfold before it."

Testifying to a Senate committee on Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Russell Feingold's resolution to censure Bush, Dean said the president "needs to be told he cannot simply ignore a law with no consequences."...

"To me, this is not really and should not be a partisan question," Dean told the panel. "I think it's a question of institutional pride of this body, of the Congress of the United States."

It's good to see that a voice of experience understands what is going on here. If the Senate doesn't want to censure the President fine. However, I think it is necessary that Congress ensure that the balance of power remains.