We know that Bush and His Evil Minions^™ are determined to create immunity for the telecommunications companies that spied on Americans, probably to cover up the fact that they used the program to spy on political enemies, particularly Kerry in 2004, but the fact that they are now cutting Kit Bond (R-MO), the ranking ‘Phant on the Senate Intelligence Committee in their negotiations with the House indicates that they are getting a bit desperate.

Normally, they don’t want their finger prints on something like this.

The Bush administration is talking directly with Democrats over rewriting the nation’s surveillance laws and leaving the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee out of the debate, a senior Senate Democrat said Wednesday.

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) said that negotiations were occurring without Sen. Kit Bond (Mo.), the ranking Republican on the panel.

………

“You know, Bond, he’s just complicating things,” Rockefeller said. “And I’ve never talked to him about [his one-on-one talks with Hoyer], so I don’t understand it.”

The only reason that the Bushies are so intent on this is because this program involves something so awful that they would all go to jail, and the only thing I can think of that would do that is their use of the program for partisan electoral advantage.

I could be wrong on this. When ever I think that I’ve mined the depths of the Bush administration, it turns out that I’m insufficiently imaginative.