JOHN SAMPLES, IN REASON:

Bloggers were one of the big political successes of the 2004 election. This motley group of opinionated writers used their cyber soapboxes to attack and defend the presidential campaigns and the two major parties. Their websites offered a fresh look at politics and implicitly undermined the Establishment media that so many Americans have come to distrust. In other words, bloggers used freedom of speech to improve American democracy.

Naturally the federal government is about to come down hard on bloggers.

We have the word of two Senators that this isn’t true.

UPDATE: Ed Morrissey lacks confidence in these reassurances.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Roger Simon thinks that politicians aren’t dumb enough to go after bloggers.