GOP Vs. White House On Intel Bill

Defying President Bush, two influential Republican House chairmen – who led opposition dooming legislation based on the Sept. 11 commission's recommendations — said they won't change their minds without Senate concessions.

"It'll be tougher now because the well got even more poisoned by the senators and their supporters thoroughly criticizing Duncan Hunter and myself by name on the talking head shows yesterday," Rep. James Sensenbrenner, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said Monday.

There was nothing left but recriminations on Monday, with most of Congress heading home for Thanksgiving and Mr. Bush still on an overseas trip. No meetings of the bill's negotiators have been planned.

The House and Senate scheduled Dec. 6-7 meetings just in case a deal is reached.

Mr. Bush personally lobbied House Republicans and told reporters Sunday that "it was clear I wanted the bill passed.'' But Sensenbrenner and House Armed Services Committee chairman Duncan Hunter spoke against the bill in a House GOP meeting Saturday afternoon, forcing Speaker Dennis Hastert to pull it.

CBS News Chief White House Correspondent John Roberts reports the bill would create a powerful new national intelligence director with control over all intelligence budgets, including the Pentagon's. But Pentagon brass, led by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, argued it could handcuff their ability to get urgent satellite and other intelligence to troops on the battlefield.

That was enough for Hunter to block a vote on the bill.

"While we are in a shooting war, why should we do something that is going to translate in the least into confusion on the battlefield, and at worst, into combat casualties?" asked Hunter, R-Calif.

Supporters of the plan insist there's nothing in it that would restrict the flow of intelligence to the troops.

"I think if we go back to work and convince these people that that's not the case and in fact they will be better off, then that's what we need to do," said Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kansas, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

But the holdout members aren't budging despite personal appeals from both the president and vice president. They want language in the bill that clearly keeps the intelligence director's nose out of the military chain of command.

"I think the Senate simply has to come across the finish line on chain of command, maintain that tight chain command, that link between the satellites and the war fighters," said Hunter.

Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., demanded that the bill also deal with anti-terrorism laws and illegal immigration.

Sensenbrenner said at first the Senate had refused to negotiate on his issues until two weeks ago. Then, in direct negotiation by phone with Mr. Bush on Air Force One, Sensenbrenner said he gave up on most of his demands — including tightening up driver's license requirements so illegal immigrants can't get them — after the president called that a "poison pill."

But when informed by Mr. Bush's negotiators of Sensenbrenner's concession, Senate negotiators refused to budge on his other issue – reforming asylum laws so terrorists can't use them to enter the country — ensuring his opposition.

"The Senate's going to have to give in on some of this stuff," Sensenbrenner said after meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney.

The House members' defiance will have repercussions, John Lehman, a former Navy secretary who worked under President Reagan, told CNN.

"This is the classic confrontation you see in Washington that they can sell tickets for," said Lehman, who also served on the Sept. 11 commission. "Because the president now has been challenged directly by the leadership of the Congress and by the lobbyists and by the bureaucracy. Now he's got to show who's in charge."

Hunter said he knew the president and Hastert wanted this bill, but "what we have to do here is exercise our best judgment."

"Having a son who just came back from a second tour in Fallujah, those are the folks I care about," Hunter said. "I just gave my best recommendation to the Republican conference."

Sensenbrenner said criticism would just make it harder to negotiate.

"It was tough to begin with. It will be even tougher after the Senate plus (GOP House Intelligence chairman Pete) Hoekstra had a press conference where they badmouthed Duncan Hunter and me, and everybody got on the talking head shows and pilloried Congressman Hunter and me," Sensenbrenner said.

On Hunter's and his issues, "the American people are overwhelmingly on our side," he said.