Please forgive me in advance for the frustrated tone of this message. This regards the NSA surveillance activities, as well as the actions of the President and the Attorney General, rendition and torture, leaks and the scandalous revelations of corruption in this administration and Congress. If the Republican members of the Intelligence Committees are dragging their feet because they think that the Democratic members are trying to embarrass this President and his staff, I wish for you all to know that the American people are already plenty embarrassed. You can move past that stumbling block. We are amazed at what is going on in our government right now. This President, his political appointees and Congressional leaders from both parties are not above the law. Given the incredible level of incompetence being displayed in governing this country it will be even more embarrassing and frightening if Congress decides to legislate around these people and issues rather than holding them accountable to the Constitution and to the citizens of this nation. Please don't politicize this or put loyalty ahead of your oaths.We the people need full, non partisan investigations into these matters and full explanations of why the laws of the land are not good enough for this administration and why this Republican led Congress is not more interested in holding it accountable. Is oversight dead in Congress or just out of town indefinitely? It's demoralizing to watch blatant abuse and corruption get spun off as somehow acceptable based upon partisan and electoral needs. Please take a firm stand and press your colleagues to uphold the ethics you are all bound to in accepting public office. We need oversight AND enforcement. After all that's been revealed in the past two years alone I would think that any member of the House or Senate that hasn't weighed the possibility of impeachment does not serve the American people...or deserve their pension...because the future of this Nation and the global repercussions of these matters are clearly at a crisis level. Why should the American people and their children pay for the results of the incompetence of our elected leaders when they appear only to be serving their own parties and special interests while on the job? If you as a committee refuse to act perhaps you should be forced to sacrifice as well. I know it's a tough job full of complexities and compromises but these are drastic times and the citizens of this country expect a whole lot more than we're getting right now from our elected leaders and the folks who are charged with keeping an eye on them. We expect the members of the Intelligence Committees to be above the fray and to be keeping a sharp eye on the big picture. If our voices and concerns are not heard now then the Republican Party can expect a thunderous roar in November from swing voters like me who want to see action taken by these committees on behalf of the greatest good of this Nation and its people...or to see the people on these committees replaced. Thanks for your consideration and for all your efforts on our behalf. It's clearly a tough job during these very challenging times...and we expect a lot of you.   Sincerely, Don Conoscenti / Chicago IL 3-12-06