Congress Vows Scrutiny of Phone-Record Collecting (Update1)

[dogday]

May 12 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. lawmakers are vowing to take a close look at the government's secret collection of millions of phone records and will demand answers from President George W. Bush's nominee to head the Central Intelligence Agency.

Disclosure of the National Security Agency program yesterday reverberated across Capitol Hill, where members of Congress introduced legislation, called for investigations and pledged to order executives from the biggest U.S. phone companies to testify about their role in the effort. Air Force General Michael Hayden, the former NSA chief nominated to head the CIA, will get extra scrutiny, Democratic and Republican lawmakers said.

``We are on our way to a major constitutional confrontation on the Fourth Amendment guarantees on unreasonable searches and seizure,'' said Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, who sits on the intelligence subcommittee that was briefed on the program. ``This is also going to present a growing impediment to the confirmation to General Hayden.''

Bush, responding to the outcry, made a hastily arranged appearance at the White House where he defended the administration's spying efforts as necessary to fight terrorists. He didn't confirm or deny the program, which was reported yesterday by USA Today.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aFTywqI.BjYg&refer=us

[Gman]

1. *yawn*

heard that before

[Jim Warren]

3. Roger that

The only thing lower than bush's poll numbers are those of congress, around what 22-23%?
cheney don't count.

[Mandate My Ass]

2. Don't watch it! STOP it! Or just go home, as Arlen Specter said

And last I heard Dems said they weren't going to focus Hayden's confirmation hearings on NSA spying. All the other fascist enablers got confirmed, so will this one. :grr:

[ladjf]

4. Congressional "vows" are as worthless as Confederate money.