Hightower Lowdown

There's a tradition in America as old as the Bill of Rights: trampling on the Bill of Rights.

The latest excuse is "fighting terrorism here at home," and it's inventor is Bill Clinton. He says he's spent sleepless nights over what he calls the "highly likely" possibility that a terrorist group will launch a chemical or bacterial attack on American soil sometime soon, so he's been issuing secret directves to "protect" us.

Protect us how? One, there is to be stepped-up monitoring of civilian computer networks. (Nobce that every move to protect us begins with more surveillance of those to be protected.) Two, Clinton says he'll create a special new corps of computer experts to keep track of ... well, of what? "Terrorists," of course, but who are they? Your neigh- bors? Certain citizens who fit a profile? Any "odd" political group?

Clinton is even considering creating a new "commander-in-chief for homeland defense," giving the military a new beachhead in our own country ... and a new target us!

And we're supposed to Wieve this guy is a Democrat?