Dianne Feinstein: “Indeed, Madam President, I am taken aback by the generosity of the Senator from Connecticut, and I want him to know I…”

“Indeed, Madam President, I am taken aback by the generosity of the Senator from Connecticut, and I want him to know I very much appreciate it. I wish to make a few comments on this bill and then introduce two amendments. These two amendments are very important to me because without them I am going to have a great deal of trouble voting for the final product. I say that as a predicate. First, the general comments. On December 16, 2005, the New York Times introduced the world to a secret NSA surveillance program, later dubbed the ``terrorist surveillance program,'' or TSP as it came to be known. This program, ordered by the President after September 11, 2001, was conducted in violation of U.S. law. I have served on the Intelligence Committee for more than 6 years now and on the Judiciary Committee for almost 15 years, and I can tell you that NSA signals intelligence is an indispensable tool on the war on terror. No one should think there aren't people who would do us harm. The only way to wage this war on terror is to find them before they find us. At the same time, it is crucial to remember the history. FISA was first enacted in 1978 in the wake of major civil rights abuses of foreign intelligence. The White House had authorized surveillance on Americans because of their political views--Martin Luther King, Joan Baez, and many others--a massive drift net collection of communications of U.S. citizens into and out of the United States.”