JTA: "Reform movement: Surveillance ‘of great concern’"

Can you spot the weird perfunctory attempt to give this some sort of Jewish relevance?

The Reform movement expressed “great concern” over reports the Bush administration authorized domestic eavesdropping of American citizens without court approval.

Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism, said Monday that the administration had circumvented safeguards designed to ensure civil liberties in times of national security.

“Throughout the centuries, Jewish communities have known the consequences of unchecked government power,” Saperstein said. “For this reason, the Reform Jewish movement now calls on Congress to assert its role in the ingenious system of checks and balances established by our founding fathers through full and fair hearings on the administration’s use of domestic spying.”

Well, I guess you can describe rapacious petty noblemen and blood-libel enraged mobs as "unchecked government power," but it seems like a bit of a plunge into abstraction if you ask me. I think I like liberals better when they are not pretending to speak for Judaism.

Tags: Reform Judaism, Bush