<...if this was a Democratic administration attempting to curtail civil liberties there would be certain voices screaming on this forum about the evil socialist democrats and their insideous lust for absolute power.

You are probably right, and not just in this forum. But you know what? I bet there wouldn't be a lot of Democrats in that group. They tend to follow the party line pretty closely. One reason Republicans have trouble with staying in power is they tend to pull in many different directions. Good thing or bad thing? Depends on your point of view I suppose.

I think that much of the opposition to Bush's policies is politically rather than philosophically motivated, at least at the higher levels of politics, abd does not reflect real concerns about freedom.l

Still, I consider it a good sign that at other political levels there is a lot of skepticism about tighter government control over its citizens, even if justified as a matter of national security. I consider it an even better sign that this watchfulness is coming from both ends of the political spectrum.