Constitutional Law

Senate Considers FISA Amendments

The Senate began consideration of amendments to FISA today, including a grant of  immunity for telecom companies that assisted the government's warrantless wiretapping program. A procedural rule governing the debate may favor the administration's positions over a compromise measure adopted by the Senate Judiciary Committee. The administration's bill was criticized in this Senate Judiciary Committee report for "not contain[ing] adequate protections to guard against the kind of Executive abuse that occurred with the [Terrorist Surveillance Program] and related programs."

Background information on the three major legislative approaches is available here. The Progress Report summarized the issues under consideration.

(H/T Secrecy News)

Full post as published by ACS Blog on January 24, 2008 (boomark / email).