By Rand Paul
Obama acts as though we no longer have a Constitution
Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis told Congress on Thursday that federal intelligence agencies didn't tell him before last month's Boston Marathon bombings of warnings received from Russian officials about suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev's possible radical ties.
As Republicans continue to raise questions regarding the Obama administration's handling of intelligence leading up to the Boston bombings, the House this week will hold the first of what is expected to be many congressional hearings on the issue.
The emotions raised by the Boston Marathon bombing are clouding the judgment of policymakers, tempting them to expand domestic surveillance to thwart future attacks. Constitutional rights once surrendered are likely to be impossible to regain.
Boston's police commissioner called on Wednesday for more cameras, more surveillance and even drones in the aftermath of the April 15 marathon bombings that killed three and injured dozens.
Boston's top cop wants drones hovering over next year's marathon, but getting his hands on one may be easier said than done.
Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis called the cooperation and coordination between his department, state police and the FBI in pursuing the Boston bombing suspects "flawless."
The two bombs that ripped through the crowds at the Boston Marathon, killing three people and wounding more than 170, were fashioned out of pressure cookers and packed with shards of metal, nails and ball bearings, a person briefed on the investigation said Tuesday.
With a flash of fire and a pair of deafening blasts, the Boston Marathon disintegrated Monday into a bloody scene of chaos and terror after two bombs went off near the finish line of the iconic race, killing at least three, severing limbs, injuring more than 130 and setting the country on high alert.
Edward Davis still can't believe he made it out alive. The 90-year-old Army veteran, who has Parkinson's disease and lives at D.C.'s Armed Forces Retirement Home, still can recall the attack on Pearl Harbor 70 years ago.
Screaming fans dressed in the black and gold of the Boston Bruins smiled, waved and stood on trees and bus shelters as they watched the NHL champions _ and the Stanley Cup, of course _ roll through city streets on a balmy, breezy day.
A shooting early Tuesday left a toddler and three others dead, and a fifth person was hospitalized and not expected to survive, police said. There have been no arrests, and outraged city officials asked residents for help.
"That's very hard to say," he said during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing. "We would certainly look at the information. We would certainly talk to the individual. From the information I've received, the FBI did that and closed the case out. I can't say I would've come to a different conclusion."
Mr. Davis, while speaking at Capitol Hill's first hearing regarding the April 15 bombings, said it was almost four days after the attack when federal authorities shared the information.
