DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE URGES OPPOSITION TO THE BILL

Washington, Nov 15, 2007 - "Although al Qaeda was responsible for the attacks of September 11th, restrictions on intelligence sharing operations cause a failure to detect the plans and prevented us from stopping them," said Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Ocala). "Gathering intelligence is essential to safeguarding our nation and to combating the terrorists. This measure undermines our intelligence capabilities and I oppose it."

H.R. 3777, amending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, was approved today by the House. Although it authorizes our intelligence agencies to conduct surveillance of foreign communications through 2009, it also requires the government to receive permission from a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to conduct surveillance on non-citizens who are reasonably believed to be outside of the United States.

"This means we could intercept the communications of a terrorist operating in the United States without a court order, but not those of a terrorist operating overseas," explained Stearns. "This bill effectively would extend our Constitutional protections to terrorists plotting against us in another nation."