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Bush Urges Swift Action On Stimulus, Eavesdrop Bill

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By JENNIFER LOVEN, The Associated Press

Published: January 27, 2008

WASHINGTON - President Bush appealed Saturday for swift congressional action on an economic rescue initiative and an electronic surveillance law that soon expires.

The White House and House leaders of both parties reached agreement on a simply drawn stimulus program, which would provide tax rebate checks to 117 million families and give businesses $50 billion in incentives to invest in new plants and equipment.

In his weekly radio address, Bush asked Congress to approve the agreement as soon as possible.

Some in the Senate, which will take up the measure after it goes to the House floor next week, have signaled they want to broaden the bill.

Democrats there want such things as an unemployment benefits extension, an increase in home heating subsidies or higher food stamp benefits. Bush suggested that they could derail the whole effort, and he warned against it.

"While I understand the desire to add provisions from both the left and the right, it would be a mistake to undermine this important bipartisan agreement," Bush said.

"By working together, we can provide our economy with a shot in the arm when we need it most."

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., said Saturday: "The White House's cooperation with Congress in recent days is long, long overdue. And it's encouraging. But let's hope it is habit-forming."

But Dorgan, delivering the Democrats' weekly radio address, added: "We need to do so much, much more. We need to fix the bigger economic issues that threaten our country's future."

Among those issues, Dorgan said, are the cost of the war in Iraq, the mortgage crisis and the trade deficit.

The eavesdropping law expires Friday. Among issues to be resolved are: How much oversight, and by whom, of the government's surveillance of communications involving people inside the United States with those outside the country?

Also at issue is whether to grant legal immunity to telecommunications companies that helped the government conduct warrantless surveillance.

"If this law expires, it will become harder to figure out what our enemies are doing to infiltrate our country, harder for us to uncover terrorist plots, and harder to prevent attacks on the American people," Bush said.

"We need to know who our enemies are and what they are plotting. And we cannot afford to wait until after an attack to put the pieces together," he said.

The original FISA law requires the government to get permission from a special court to listen in on the phone calls and read the e-mail of people in the United States.

The Protect America Act, adopted in August, eased that restriction. Privacy and civil liberties advocates say it went too far, giving the government far more power to eavesdrop on American communications without court oversight.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Saturday that Bush's threat to veto a short extension of the intelligence measure is "shamefully irresponsible."

He said the House has passed an intelligence bill and the Senate was ready to pass its own bill until the Republicans blocked all the amendments.

"Democrats are ready to extend current law for as long as necessary, but Republicans are blocking that extension and the White House is threatening a veto," Reid said.

Under current law, he said, intelligence collection activity that is under way would not be cut off Friday.

The White House says the nation needs a long-term intelligence law, not a patchwork of possibly endless extensions.

The administration says the House and Senate have had months to pass a measure, and says both chambers should pass one before the House leaves next week.

Bush's radio address served as a preview of part of his State of the Union address, which he will deliver to a joint session of Congress on Monday night.

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