Ed Markey: “Let us be clear. There is no question that our government must make every effort to uncover, disrupt and prevent…”

“Let us be clear. There is no question that our government must make every effort to uncover, disrupt and prevent terrorist attacks. The 9/11 strikes demonstrated the devastation that can result if we fail to detect terrorist plots. The question is not whether our intelligence agencies should be allowed to conduct electronic surveillance of suspected terrorists. The answer is, of course, yes. The question before us is whether a court should review such surveillance so innocent American citizens are not spied upon as the government conducts surveillance operations. The bill we are considering today fails to provide the vital civil liberty safeguards for American citizens that are the cornerstone of our democracy. This bill is badly flawed. It expands the President's authority to secretly wiretap U.S. citizens without going for a warrant to a court. Under current law, warrantless wiretapping is permitted in certain emergency situations. This bill more than doubles the amount of time that the President can conduct surveillance of U.S. citizens without a warrant.”