WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans blocked a proposed investigation of President Bush's domestic spying operation Thursday as the chairman of the Intelligence Committee said he had reached an agreement with the White House to pursue legislation establishing clearer rules for the controversial program.
But Senate aides described the discussions with the White House as very preliminary. And angry Democrats expressed skepticism over the negotiations, with some describing them as a ploy to protect the Bush administration and the highly classified surveillance operation from congressional scrutiny.
The political maneuvering underscored the stakes surrounding a secret intelligence-gathering program that the White House describes as crucial to preventing future terrorist attacks in the United States, but which critics see as unconstitutional and an abuse of executive power.
The tactics by Republicans on the Intelligence Committee leave the surveillance operations in place while giving the White House time to influence the debate on Capitol Hill. Separately, the House Intelligence Committee is considering its own inquiry. Among members of the panel raising questions about the program is Rep. Heather A. Wilson (R-N.M.).
Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), after a closed-door meeting with Senate committee members, said the panel had decided to adjourn without considering a Democratic proposal to begin an investigation of the program, which is run by the National Security Agency, an intelligence agency that operates eavesdropping posts around the globe.
Roberts, the panel chairman, said the vote was put off because the White House had "committed to legislation and has agreed to brief more Intelligence Committee members on the nature of the surveillance program."
White House officials confirmed a new willingness to consider legislative fixes, after weeks of insisting that no congressional action was necessary.
"We maintain that the president does not need additional congressional authority," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said. But she said the administration was now willing to discuss a GOP proposal that contained "some good legislative concepts that would not undermine the president's ability to protect Americans."
Perino was referring to a proposal by Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) that would specifically authorize the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on international calls involving U.S. residents and suspected terrorists overseas without first obtaining a court warrant.
