Lawmakers Edge Toward Surveillance Law Overhaul
Lawmakers appear closer to a deal to rewrite the law governing electronic surveillance. But there are still significant differences between Democrats and Republicans over how to fix it. And some are warning against hurrying to pass legislation before the August break.
MELISSA BLOCK, host:
In some ways, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are a lot like the journalists who cover them - both tend to wait until the last minute before a deadline, before buckling down and getting a job done. Thus, the rush this week in Congress to rewrite a law known as FISA. That's short for the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Lawmakers have been talking about updating FISA since 2005. Now, they're scrambling to get the job done before Congress breaks for its month-long recess.
NPR's Mary Louise Kelly reports.
MARY LOUISE KELLY: If you wander through the corridors of the Capitol this week, you'll hear a lot of talk about the need to fix FISA, specifically, you'll hear a lot of comments like this.
Senator ARLEN SPECTER (Republican, Pennsylvania): Congress cannot adjourn, in my opinion, without providing that legislative change.
KELLY: That's Republican Senator Arlen Specter, speaking at a hearing this morning. FISA is the law that governs electronic surveillance. The Bush administration wants to change it to expand to the government's ability to track the foreign communications of suspected terrorists. But Democrats and some Republicans have problems with the administration's plan. Senator Specter.
Sen. SPECTER: One of the factors, which is involved is that the proposed legislation gives additional powers to the attorney general, which is candidly very difficult to do.
KELLY: Difficult to do because Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is politically toxic these days on Capitol Hill. Some senators believe Gonzales lied during recent testimony, and that makes the administration's FISA plan a hard sell. It would grant the attorney general the authority to order secret surveillance without involving the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. David Rivkin, a Washington lawyer, who served in the administrations of President Reagan and the first President Bush, says this is a reasonable approach.
Mr. DAVID RIVKIN (Partner, Baker & Hostetler LLP): I understand that Democrats, even some Republicans, are disenchanted with the attorney general, but the whole notion of letting, sort of, personal peek drive one's approach to serious structuring of national security legislation is unfortunate.
KELLY: But Democrats say their objection isn't to Gonzales personally - however unpopular he may be at the moment - but to granting so much power to any attorney general. One Democratic congressional aide, who's not authorized to speak publicly about the negotiation, says unless the FISA court is given a role, these negotiations are over. Another concern that's emerging is whether Congress, in its haste to pass a law, will produce a really bad one. There are two reasons for the sense of urgency.
Reports have emerged as a recent court ruling that's made it harder for the National Security Agency to intercept some overseas communications. It's not clear exactly what restrictions the classified ruling has imposed, but yesterday, the Senate Intelligence Committee chairman, Democrat Jay Rockefeller, cited recent technical developments that have persuaded him an immediate fix is needed.
The other factor is word from U.S. spy agencies that al-Qaida has rebuilt and is plotting new attacks. The Bush administration argues that in what it calls a heightened threat environment, Congress can afford to wait until after vacation to fix FISA, an argument that Caroline Fredrickson of the American Civil Liberties Union does not find persuasive.
Ms. CAROLINE FREDRICKSON (Director, American Civil Liberties Union): The problem is that there is no reason that they have to get it done before they go out on recess, that they have to go on vacation and that, therefore, they're going to rush something through that is this massive and has this much of an impact on our basic rights. And the legislative framework for spying on Americans is, I think, it's shameful.
KELLY: One point all sides in the debate agree on is that whatever Congress may pass this week, it's only temporary. Both the administration and congressional leaders say more changes to FISA will be on the agenda this fall.
Mary Louise Kelly, NPR News, Washington.
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