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Senate Judiciary Committee to hear concerns about surveillance bill
The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to hold a hearing next Wednesday to air concerns about proposed legislation that essentially authorizes President Bush’s secret terrorist surveillance program—a program that allows intelligence agencies to eavesdrop in America and overseas without warrants.
But even before the first witness has testified, a number of Democratic senators —including three presidential hopefuls—are making it clear they will not endorse giving the administration more surveillance power if it includes liability protection for telecommunications companies that secretly participated in the president’s program before it became public.
The American Civil Liberties Union is keeping a list of lawmakers who have pledged to support Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., in his effort to filibuster the bill or indefinitely delay it with a parliamentary maneuver called a “hold.”
Here’s the list:
Sen. Joe Biden, D-Delaware
Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Maryland
Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisconsin
Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Massachusetts
Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois
Telecommunications companies like AT&T and Verizon have put on a full court lobbying effort to win immunity from lawsuits. The companies participated in the secret National Security Agency program under a directive from former attorney generals who deemed the program legal. They want to avoid paying heavy damages in more than three dozen class action lawsuits filed against them for participating in the program and they don’t want to be forced to stop helping intelligence agencies track down terrorists.
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