Wiretap Bill Moves Closer to Passage

This version of the president’s warrantless eavesdropping bill—which appears headed for passage—will apparently still allow Bush the option of submitting his surveillance programs to a court for review.

Washington Post:

Last-minute changes to legislation authorizing the National Security Agency’s warrantless wiretapping program have won the support of three balking Senate Republicans, improving the chances that a bill expanding the Bush administration’s surveillance authority will pass Congress this week.

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill this month that would allow, but not require, the administration to submit its warrantless wiretapping program to a secret national security court for constitutional review. But three Republicans who last year helped delay the renewal of the USA Patriot Act—Sens. Larry E. Craig (Idaho), John E. Sununu (N.H.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)—combined forces again to express strong misgivings about the bill’s implications for civil liberties.

Link