Not only did Bush come out for censoring political speech, even speech that supports him, but at this morning’s House Financial Services’ Committee hearing on money laundering and terrorist financing, 9-11 commissioner Lee Hamilton confirmed that the Fourth Amendment is dead. According to Hamilton (and Barney Frank) in the post-9-11 environment the government must have the power to monitor all financial transactions to identify terrorists. But fear not, for the 9-11 commission has recommended creating an independent board to review the federal government’s actions and make sure that government does not abuse the new powers it is gaining from the “war on terror.”

Only Ron Paul (of course) defended our right “to be secure in our [financial] papers.”

Ron Paul was also the only one of the assembled “representatives” to dissent from Hamilton’s endorsement of a national ID card.