Who's first to attack and weaken the First Amendment guarantee of a Free Press? Republicans and ConservaDems.

Attacking the press, the lame stream media, is hot right now. So much so, Republicans smell blood in the water to take on the Constitution's guarantee of a free press. Jonathan Turley:

Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), the incoming chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, has called for WikiLeaks to be officially designated as a terrorist organization. This would, of course, allow the same designation for The New York Times and other organizations to be declared terrorists for publishing leaked stories on torture, secret prisons, or the Pentagon Papers.

With Democrats like Claire McCaskill calling for prosecutions, we could be entering a very dangerous period for press freedom in our country. Democrats are still smarting over the leaking of embarrassing stories showing that their leadership knew about the torture program and other abuses during the Bush Administration. As noted by Sen. Rockefeller, many members long for the period when the public had less coverage and were not so critical of their conduct in office.

As the incoming Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, one cannot dismiss these statements are coming from the fringe of American politics despite King’s past controversial statements.

Remember, centrist Democrats are well right of todays political "center." To compare them to actual Democrats and liberals is a waste of time.

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• US says it may go after WikiLeaks chief (alternet.org)
• Should WikiLeaks Be Shut Down? (politics.usnews.com)
• Graham, McCaskill Tangle Over Arms Treaty (blogs.wsj.com)