Perhaps that last line about holding those responsible accountable helps to explain the quick response from seven former Bush Administration officials, who joined a sitting GOP congressman in a letter to the RNC, obtained by Eli Lake of The Daily Beast. "As Republicans who are familiar with the threat that terrorism still poses to this country, we are compelled to dissent from the ill-considered resolution adopted by the Republican National Committee on January 24 by voice vote," the letter states. "The Republican National Committee plays a vital role in political campaigns, but it has relatively little expertise in national security."

Of course, one needn't be a national-security expert to appreciate the moral, constitutional, and human-rights implications of mass surveillance on hundreds of millions. That's a fundamental point that national-security-state insiders still don't seem to grasp: Their expertise is real, but on a host of issues it is beside the point. The RNC is composed of political experts, so I expect that when Representative Peter King complains that "it’s basically repudiating the policies of the Republican Party over the last 12 years," committee members are well aware of that fact.

Another critique of the RNC's actions come from Commentary, a magazine associated with the hawkish faction that is losing power in the GOP. Max Boot writes:

Republicans have already done a good job over the past decade in squandering their traditional advantage in the national-security arena–for example by supporting sequestration, which could have a devastating impact on our military readiness and by not supporting strong action to stop the bloodshed in Syria. Now a certain segment of the GOP appears determined to get to the left of President Obama in the war on terrorism. Earlier I called this the Rand Paul wing of the GOP; it might just as well be called the Maxine Waters wing. When Republicans see eye-to-eye with the most extreme doves in the Democratic Party, it’s time for a gut check.

Isn't that funny?

One of neoconservatism's most reflexive hawks finally notices that the GOP squandered its traditional advantage on national security over the last decade, and he attributes it to ... sequestration and excessive dovishness on Syria! Yes, Max, perhaps it was just a coincidence that the loss of faith coincided with that war of choice you championed, the one that killed 2,000 more Americans than 9/11.

The DNC is surely going to be asked about this resolution if they haven't been already.

I wonder what they'll say.