Compromise reached on government wiretaps
The new bill would give spy agencies greater powers and protect phone companies, but it would also require court approvals.
WASHINGTON — After a yearlong battle over U.S. wiretapping laws, House and Senate leaders announced a compromise Thursday on legislation to expand the government's eavesdropping authority and protect telephone companies that cooperate from being sued.
If approved, the compromise would give U.S. spy agencies sweeping power to siphon international e-mails and phone calls from fiber-optic networks in the United States.
But the measure would require the government to obtain approval from a special court for its eavesdropping procedures, and would generally prohibit eavesdropping on U.S. citizens without an individual warrant.
Still, the deal was supported by the White House, which called it "a good bill that meets the standards" set by President Bush.
The agreement signaled an end to a bitter standoff between the Bush administration and leading House Democrats, who had blocked previous bills over concerns that they would sanction an illegal wiretapping program and shield phone companies from liability. But Democrats lacked the votes needed to prevail, and seemed eager to resolve an election-year dispute that often played to the political advantage of Republicans.
House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), who played a leading role in the negotiations, said the compromise "is not perfect, but I believe it strikes a sound balance."
The deal was criticized by some Democrats. Sen. Russell D. Feingold (D-Wis.), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said the proposal "is not a compromise, it is a capitulation. . . . Democrats should be standing up to the flawed and dangerous policies of this administration."
But the measure largely tracks legislation that cleared the Senate last year, and now appears poised to prevail in the House as well. Congressional officials said the House could vote on the measure as early as today, followed by a Senate vote next week.
Feingold and others were particularly critical of a provision that would scuttle dozens of lawsuits filed against AT&T, Verizon and other telecommunications firms accused of granting the government extensive access to their networks over the last six years.
Their cooperation came as part of a warrantless-wiretapping program secretly authorized by Bush in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks, which allowed spy agencies to monitor international calls and e-mails without court approval. Critics contend companies should not be protected for taking part in an operation that may have violated decades-old domestic surveillance laws.
