Originally published February 26 2006
Top Republican casts doubt on the value of Bush's domestic spying program
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.), Chairman on the House Intelligence Committee, has called into question the effectiveness of Bush's domestic spying program, after the blitz of media attention that has surrounded it for the past month.
The House Intelligence Committee chairman on Sunday questioned the value of President Bush's secret eavesdropping program, saying al- Qaida undoubtedly has changed its means of communication to avoid Washington's monitoring.
Bush said two weeks ago in his State of the Union address that the program of monitoring calls and e-mail between the United States and suspected terrorist associates overseas "remains essential to the security of America."
But Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., suggested that the public disclosure of the program's existence in December in the New York Times has undermined its effectiveness.
Hoekstra said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Since that disclosure, legal scholars and lawmakers from both parties have questioned whether Bush had the authority to conduct the surveillance without a judge's approval.
By law, a secret court, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, is designed to grant warrants for such surveillance.
He said if Democrats who were briefed on the program before it became public thought the president was breaking the law, they should have tried to stop him.
Rep. Jane Harman, the leading Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, said she did not fully understand the legal underpinnings of the program at the time of the classified briefings and was not free to consult with experts.
Since the monitoring has become public, she has argued that the president broke the law by failing to consult all the members of the intelligence committees, instead of just the leaders.
We have no ability to consult constitutional experts or legal experts on the history of FISA.
Hoekstra and Harman appeared with two others who were among the few leading lawmakers to be briefed on the program before it became public: Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan.
Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, to have the FISA court review the eavesdropping program and decide whether it is legal.
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