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Dead Constitution See other Dead Constitution Articles Title: White House Says No to 30-Day Surveillance Law Extension White House Says No to 30-Day Surveillance Law Extension By Tim Starks, CQ Staff The White House on Monday formally threatened to veto a 30-day extension of a temporary law that has broadly expanded President Bush’s surveillance authority. The threat came just hours before the House was set to vote on the measure, and as Bush was set in his State of the Union Address to repeat his demand that Congress make permanent the temporary law (PL 110-55) set to expire Feb. 1. “Patchwork extensions of critical national security tools do not give our intelligence community the long-term certainty they need to do their jobs and protect our nation,” the White House Office of Management and Budget said in a policy statement. “Nor do they give needed certainty to our private partners, whose assistance is so vital to this enterprise.” A spokesman for House Minority Leader John A. Boehner, R-Ohio, said Republicans would vote against the 30-day extension bill (HR 5104) when it comes up about 5 p.m. Kevin Smith, a spokesman for Boehner, said Republicans would oppose the extension because they believe the surveillance provisions of the Protect America Act, as the temporary law is formally known, need to be made permanent. Moreover, he said, telecommunications companies being sued for their alleged role in the National Security Agency’s warrantless wiretapping program need to be given retroactive legal immunity. Meanwhile, the Senate was set to vote on a Republican motion to limit debate on a Senate Intelligence Committee-approved, administration-backed bill (S 2248) rewriting the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA, PL 95-511). The motion appeared headed for defeat. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D- Nev., has said he wants the Senate to vote on amendments to the bill, but Republicans have moved to block amendments, arguing that they could upset a delicate compromise. Hours before the Senate vote, Reid attacked Bush for blocking the Senate from considering any extension of the FISA law. “It is up to the president,’’ Reid said. “The only thing the president does well is frighten the American people. Everything we’ve tried to do on this he has stood in the way.’’ House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said no matter what happens in the Senate, the House will consider a one-month FISA extension before House Democrats leave town Tuesday for their three-day retreat in Williamsburg, Va. “Why the president would want to use scare tactics, you’ll have to ask him,’’ said Pelosi. She said even if FISA expires underyling law would allow some wiretapping of foreign terrorism suspects to continue until an agreement is reached. “We can take a deep breath and have a discussion,’’ she said. Edward Epstein contributed to this article.
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