Senator "Right to Privacy" Hoisted by His Own Petard

GOP senators seeking Schumer's guarantee
By Peter Savodnik

Republican senators seeking reelection in 2006 are sending Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), a letter asking him to guarantee that Democratic campaign aides will not access their credit reports.

It is unclear who first drafted the letter, but Republican sources on Capitol Hill said all 13 GOP senators who face reelection battles this cycle were asked to lend their support.

“While the DSCC press secretary and counsel have publicly denied that the DSCC accessed the personal credit reports of any other Republican senators or candidates, the security of our families’ finances is too important to rely on the assurances of professional political staff and consultants whose primary focus is defeating us next November,” a copy of the letter circulated yesterday morning at a meeting of Republican press secretaries states.

“Therefore, we are seeking your personal assurance, as a colleague, that employees or agents of the DSCC did not access our personal credit history or the personal credit history of any of our family members.”

The original version of the letter also included this sentence: “In fact, we must confess our personal disappointment that we are forced to reach out to you on this matter and that you did not contact us and offer such assurances on your own volition.” That sentence was stricken from a later draft.

A spokeswoman for Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) said the senator would sign the letter. Santorum, who has lost ground to his Democratic opponent, state Treasurer Bob Casey, in recent months, is one of the Democrats’ top targets next year.

This is clearly a violation of ethics, and Senator Chuck needs to be forced to face the music. This is dirty politics in its most pernicious and dangerous form. The intentional violation of a citizen's privacy for the perpose of undermining his constitutional right to stand for office is unacceptable and Schumer needs to resign for this.

Full Story: Schumer's Schlime

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