Article II

From the Post on the domestic spying hearing:

Gonzales said the president approved the program under his authority in Article 2 of the U.S. Constitution, as well as under the authority of the 2001 force resolution, which he said was "very broadly worded" in authorizing Bush to use "all necessary and appropriate force" against the al Qaeda terrorist network.

First, Article 2 is clearly subject to restrictions in the Bill of Rights, as those rights are amendments to the prior sections of the Constitution. There is no logical way to understand the President's authority as extending beyond those bounds. To claim otherwise is to say that the Bill of Rights is meaningless.

Second, since when is wiretapping "force," necessary, appropriate or otherwise?