Yeah, Right.

Arlen Specter talks tough again. Y-A-W-N.

The powerful Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee all but declared war on the White House yesterday, and accused Vice President Cheney of sneaking around behind his back.

In a blistering letter to Cheney, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) laid out a long list of grievances over the White House seizing more and more power "at the expense" of Congress.

"It is neither pleasant nor easy to raise these issues with the administration of my own party," he wrote. He cited the administration's domestic spying, the gathering of Americans' phone records and the recent FBI raid of a congressman's offices.

Specter was particularly peeved that Cheney called Judiciary Committee members to kill closed-door hearings the senator had planned with phone company execs - and didn't tell Specter, even when they were at lunch Monday.

(snip)

The irate chairman threatened to dish out subpoenas and suggested the two branches of government were headed for a "constitutional confrontation."

I'll believe it when I see it. Specter has a long, long history of talking tough and then caving (I guess he figures everyone will remember the talk, but not the walk... or lack thereof). The next time this useless toady stands up to Bush & Cheney will be the first.