With Congress back in session and the Presidential election season in full swing, the fight to prevent the Administration from granting immunity to the telecoms for illegal spying is heating up once again. Activists and bloggers alike are keeping the heat on.

First, Credo Mobile (formerly Working Assets) urged its members to write to Senators Clinton, Obama and McCain, the three presidential candidates who are still in the Senate and who have said that they would oppose immunity. The results were tremendous: 67,000 emails were sent to the Senators.

Meanwhile, Jane Hamsher from Firedoglake has been urging folks to write to former Senator Edwards. Edwards can make telecom immunity a debate issue for the presidential candidates who still have a vote in Congress.

And of course, the amazing Glenn Greenwald continues to point out how Senator Harry Reid has the power to help stop the immunity train by supporting Senator Dodd and the handful of others who are willing to lay down on the tracks, but instead, Senator Reid seems to be shoveling in more coal.

Additionally, the Melman Group, a national polling organization commissioned by the ACLU, recently published a poll finding that 57 percent of likely voters opposed immunity for the telecommunications carriers that participated in the government's warrantless surveillance program, while only a third supported letting the telecoms off the hook.

For the Melman Group poll:

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/01/strong-majority-voters-oppose-telecom-immunity

For the complete post by EFF Senior Staff Attorney Kurt

Opsahl:

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/01/strong-majority-voters-oppose-telecom-immunity

For this complete post by EFF Legal Director Cindy Cohn:

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/01/bloggers-and-others-push-presidential-candidates-immunity