Playing Politics With National Security

Both political parties are trying to make political hay out of the thwarted terrorist attacks in the U.K., with the issue playing out in the New York senate race today.

The Republicans are using the attacks to bolster their efforts to win support for more pervasive use of domestic surveillance, as the Wall Street Journal reported today.

Meanwhile, both the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times ran recent stories outlining the Democrats' strategy of using the U.K. arrests to point out shortcomings in the U.S. efforts to combat terrorism.

The Democratic Senate Campaign Committee has a new web ad describing the alleged failures of the administration in its efforts to fight terror at home and abroad.

Sen. Hillary Clinton, as the Associated Press reported, sounded that theme today at a stop in Schenectady.

Not one to stand by and take it, John Spencer - one of Clinton's Republican opponents in this year's senate race - has an ad of his own, explaining why he believes Clinton is soft on national security.

The ironic thing about the Spencer ad is he ends it with the words "I won't play politics with our security." I'll just run an ad showing my opponent juxtaposed with Osama bin Laden