To the Point

Domestic Spying: The Law and the Politics

After Senators of both parties spent yesterday grilling the US Attorney General, even some Republicans say that President Bush is making an illegal power grab by claiming authority to wiretap Americans communicating with suspected terrorists overseas without a court order. Among them is Republican Committee Chair Arlen Spector, who said he was "not persuaded" by Alberto Gonzales. Democrats are treading carefully so as not to seem weak when it comes to the threat of terrorism on American soil. Will the voters crack down if they see an abuse of executive power or let the President strike a balance between civil rights and the war on terror? We hear a debate about law and the Constitution, and ask what the polls show about public opinion.Making News: Four US Presidents Attend Funeral of Coretta Scott KingFormer Presidents Carter, Clinton and Bush were among the 10,000 people today in Atlanta today at the funeral for Coretta Scott King. The current President was one of those who delivered a eulogy. Historian Vicki Crawford, co-editor of Women in the Civil Rights Movement: Trailblazers and Torchbearers, 1941-1965, says Mrs. King's leadership role began long before her husband's death.Reporter's Notebook: Was the Cartoon Controversy Orchestrated?Outrage continues over the cartoons of Mohammed published in a Danish newspaper. In Afghanistan, eight people have died in protests over the past two days, the Danish embassy in Tehran was stoned for a second day, and demonstrations are continuing in Indonesia, the Philippines and other Muslim countries. Meantime, there have been new reports on how the worldwide protest began--four months after the cartoons were published. David Rennie is Europe Correspondent for the London Daily Telegraph.