The Showdown That Wasn't

Remember when President Bush nominated Gen Hayden to be head of the CIA, replacing the resigning Porter Goss? We were told how Congress was sharpening their knives over this one, with even Republicans questioning the nomination. Senator Arlen Spector claimed he would use the hearings to delve into the NSA's programs for eavesdropping and collecting call information. Well, the whole intellegence committee got a full briefing, and a funny thing happened on the way to the big showdown -- he was voted out of committee 12-3, and he was confirmed by the full senate 78-15. Some showdown. And it points up once again, the more you know about the NSA programs, the more in favor of it you are.