Democrats Demand Spying Data

New Bill Seeks Details On All Warrantless Wiretaps Conducted Since 9/11

(AP)  The Justice Department would have to reveal to Congress the details of all electronic surveillance conducted without court orders since Sept. 11, 2001, including the so-called Terrorist Surveillance Program, if a new Democratic wiretapping bill is approved.

The draft bill, scheduled to be introduced to Congress Tuesday, would also require the Justice Department to maintain a database of all Americans subjected to government eavesdropping without a court order, including whether their names have been revealed to other government agencies.

The Bush administration has refused to share that information with Congress so far.

The Terrorist Surveillance Program was a secret eavesdropping program undertaken after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks without the approval of an intelligence court created 30 years ago to monitor such programs.

The Democratic legislation is certain to draw sharp objections and possibly a veto threat because it lacks at least one feature the White House demands: it does not grant retroactive legal immunity to telecommunications companies that cooperated with government surveillance between 2001 and 2007 without the court orders. Around 40 lawsuits name telecommunications companies for alleged violations of wiretapping laws, according to administration officials.

The measures are included in a rewrite of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to be proposed by Democratic leadership on Tuesday. The bill would replace the Protect America Act of 2007, the controversial FISA revision adopted by Congress in August. That bill was hastily adopted under pressure from the Bush administration, which said changes in technology had resulted in dire gaps in its authority to eavesdrop on terrorists.

Privacy and civil liberties advocates voiced strong concerns in the weeks after the law was signed, saying it gave the government far more power to eavesdrop on American communications without court oversight than was initially understood.

The "Responsible Electronic Surveillance That is Overseen, Reviewed and Effective Act of 2007" - or RESTORE Act - would clarify that no court orders are required for the government to conduct surveillance on communications outside the United States even when the surveillance is conducted on U.S. soil, provided the target of the eavesdropping is not known to be a U.S. person.

The bill allows the attorney general and the director of national intelligence to request an "umbrella warrant" to conduct surveillance of foreign targets, or groups of targets, for up to one year when there is a possibility that American communications may be intercepted.

The RESTORE Act would expire in December 31, 2009.

[the74blaster]

I tend to believe in cause and effect. Clinton was the cause and Bush the effect.

Posted by mudrose at 08:59 AM

Interesting point of view. However, it sounds as though you have the chickenhawks point on view on foriegn policy. However, to spare the other readers my ranting I will focus on the obvious. You make statements but you do not provide any facts to back them up.

How did Clinton cause all of the pork that the GOP senators piled on every spending bill that Bush signed?

How does Clinton have any responsibility for not finding any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq?

How did Clinton cause to poor federal response to Hurricane Katrina?

How did Clinton cause the record federal debt we have accumultated under the Bush administration?

How does Clinton have any responsibility for 911?

Bush had been in office for 9 months and had plenty of time to have his intellegence people look over this particular threat. Based on the way Iraq has been run, and the federal response to Hurrican Katrina is it any wonder they bungled detection of 911 before it happened.

Its time to hold Bush accountable for his mistakes and stop shifting blame to Clinton. I challenge you to list some facts that prove Clinton is the cause and Bush is the effect! I have offered five that prove otherwise, where are yours?

The conservative rant about blaming Clinton for Bushs problems is a bit old!

[terrorislam1]

THEY ARE LOSING

Last letter from doomed Al Qaida chief: "We are so desperate for your help"
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2007/ss_iraq_09_30.asp

Iraq insurgency: People rise against al-Qa''eda
Damien McElroy spent a week in the heart of the insurgency in Anbar province in Iraq. In the second of seven exclusive reports he describes how peace and prosperity have returned to a town formerly riven by sectarian killings.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/10/08/wanbar308.xml

[ioweign]

"If this were a dictatorship, it''''''''d be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I''''''''m the dictator." %u2014Washington, D.C., Dec. 19, 2000


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Posted by IOWEIGN at 02:10 PM : Oct 09, 2007

Sorry, not good enough. Where was this reported? He wasn''''t president on 12/19/00. You sure this wasn''''t your buddy Billdo?

Posted by mbcsmith at 02:33 PM : Oct 09, 2007

It is his quote - he doesn''t have to be president to make an asinine remark !!

[mudrose-2009]

I could go on, but reporting recent history and current events to clueless dittoheads, who are afraid to listen to anyone other the Rush and Fox news does not solve any problems.
Posted by The74blaster

Yeah, yeah, everyone is clueless who does''t agree with the likes of people like you. I tend to believe in cause and effect. Clinton was the cause and Bush the effect. So if the lardass did his job, maybe things would have turned out differently. He didn''t so Bush did. Clueless, no, not at all. Tired of *** not seeing beyond their noses. If I look at it, will you whistle?

[socrates392]

Tell the democrats that they can stick that data straigt up their azz

Posted by b48151 at 08:59 PM : Oct 09, 2007

Not until Senator Craig done with it first!

[red164]

The former Soviet Union has come to American disguised as patriotism to protect the American people wink, wink; trust the Bush Admin oh yes they will defend America he, he; when Cheney and company required 9/11 it happened. The Bush fear machine continues it%u2019s scare tactics and the (Neanderthal right wing puppets, troll the internet to spout the same ole BS).

[the74blaster]

I want Congress to keep on going back in time to the real source of what the Clinton administration did that the Bush administration had to clean up and that wasn''''''''t only the filth they left at the WH.

Posted by mudrose

This is so out of touch its almost amusing. How can you even compare the Clinton adminstration to the Bush administration? You are correct in that they are opposites.

I mean you had great leadership, a minimal gain in the federal debt, no wars and a robust economy during Clintons terms.

During Bushs terms we have weak leadership that cannot tolerate having competent advisors who have a different idea, the federal debt has almost doubled, we have a war with no decisive end in sight, and a sluggish economy rebounding from the collapse of the housing market.

I could go on, but reporting recent history and current events to clueless dittoheads, who are afraid to listen to anyone other the Rush and Fox news does not solve any problems.

[obiquital]

What are you saying on the phone that would make you so afraid of the government tapping your phone? If you aren''t saying something bad you have nothing to worry about and if you are saying something bad then it''s best that they do know. They are trying to catch terrorists here not infringe free speach rights. They aren''t going to come to your house and arrest you for saying something bad about the president. People do that all the time on the TV and radio and they still get to.

[mudrose-2009]

Keep going Congress absolutely we need to have this information in the public, I want to specifically know what they were up to in 2003-4 and I want assurances they did not undermine the electoral process or any election.

Posted by pepperp1

Now if only they would go into Gore''s account of undermining the electoral process and Clinton''s giving, not selling, but giving national security secrets to the Chinese and Sandy Berger stealing national security info and destroying it because it showed the unbelieveable incompetency of the Clinton administration in foreign policy which is why 3,000 people were killed at WTC, Washington and in Pennsylvania. Yup, I want Congress to keep on going back in time to the real source of what the Clinton administration did that the Bush administration had to clean up and that wasn''t only the filth they left at the WH.

[pepperp1]

Keep going Congress absolutely we need to have this information in the public, I want to specifically know what they were up to in 2003-4 and I want assurances they did not undermine the electoral process or any election.

[mrmazerati]

Here''s more fuel to this fire: The most recent FOX/Opinion Dynamics Poll puts Clinton over Guilani 42% to 32% (9/25-9-27), with Mike Bloomberg as a third candidate and 20% undecided. Can anybody explain this? And by explain, I mean INTELLIGENTLY. btw, never voted for any Clinton nor for any Bush, so this is not a personal issue.

[hippychicky-2009]

Honestly, who cares who leaked what to whom. Who paid what to whom. The point of the matter is wire tapping should have never been done.
Who amongest us would want our private lives displayed, for goverment foley. So that they might find better ways to weild us into submission.
No thanks!

[stevex47]

Signof4,

"Ordinarily, I wouldn''''t pi*ss on a troll like you if you were burning alive. But in your case, I WOULD pi*ss on you....just"

You and your neocon nazi nut jobs friends like Craig and foley really gotta get some help with your s-e-x problems.

[stevex47]

Somebody wrongly said Plame wasn''t covert? Sorry, her boss disagress:

"On March 16, 2007, at these hearings about the disclosure, a statement about Plame''s CIA career that had been cleared by CIA director Gen. Michael V. Hayden and the CIA, stating that Wilson was under cover and that her employment status with the CIA was classified information prohibited from disclosure under Executive Order 12958."

two sentences later the CIA director say''s her life was in danger now, blah blah blah, and the security of our country compromised !!!!!

Facts for you nazi nut job whacks, bye the CIA director. So stop trying to bolster your whacked arguments that she wasn''t covert. Your King comitted treason.

[signof4]

BTW, in the story about the leak, it was the Bush administration, not the Democrats. Posted by ourdoc at 03:45 PM : Oct 09, 2007

WRONG! The story is being REPORTED as having come from the Bush admin. by the LAMESTREAMmedia. It is now beginning to look like the leak came from CONGRESS. Yes, the DEM CONGRESS. The most honest, above board congress int he history of America.

11% and falling!!!

[mrmazerati]

I have to agree with the Dems on this one.

[adventurepa]

Not only should the information be published but the crimes against the American people should be Prosecuted and all involved should be held accountable for breaking the law.
Look for more rights to be taken away from the citizens and the United States to become a police state.
No elected official should escape the law on this one.
They have shredded the constitution.

[DocD--2008]

"The Democrats would rather leak"

You seem to be spewing the same statement in many comment areas. Are we listening to too much Rush???

BTW, in the story about the leak, it was the Bush administration, not the Democrats. If Bush has nothing to hide, why be afraid to give this info to Congress? They have the same security clearances, is Bush afraid his administration will once again have been caught with their hands stuffed into the cookie jars? This is still America, no thanks to him.

As far as the companies who are facing lawsuits, well, you don%u2019t follow the law, and you have to pay. The Government has no authority to violate the law, and those that conspire with them, follow the same fate.

[signof4]

do you want to trust documents related to our spy program to the Senate?
Posted by nexgen99 at 02:58 PM : Oct 09, 2007

nice try.....but you''re wasting your time. that guy is dumber than a bag of door ***.

[bizzzz-2009]

The Democrats would rather leak top secret information and pursue their next "gotcha" campaign rather than protect American citizens. After all, a juicy story is more important than our safety, right? You have to understand- the Democratic party is competing for their constituents'' attention with the likes of "The Real World" "Flavor of Love" and the Britney''s Spears story of the day.