Zoe Lofgren: “I want to talk about the much ballyhooed oversight. Every year, there is a report to the Judiciary Committee, an annual…”

“I want to talk about the much ballyhooed oversight. Every year, there is a report to the Judiciary Committee, an annual report, on section 215. This year, the report was eight sentences--less than a full page. To think that the Congress has substantial oversight of this program is simply incorrect. I cannot match Mr. Sensenbrenner's brilliant remarks; but I do agree that when we wrote the PATRIOT Act relevance had a meaning. Madam Chair, I submit for the Record a letter to Mr. Sensenbrenner from the Department of Justice, which basically says, because 300 inquiries were made, the records of every single American became relevant. That's a joke. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Legislative Affairs, Washington, DC, July 16, 2013. Hon. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr., House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Representative Sensenbrenner: This responds to your letter to the Attorney General date June 6, 2013, regarding the ``business records'' provision of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), 50 U.S.C. Sec. 1861, enacted as section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act. As you know, on June 5, 2013, the media reported the unauthorized disclosure of a classified judicial order issued under this provision that has been used to support a sensitive intelligence collection program.…”