Mr. Speaker, today Congress is engaged in an important debate, perhaps the most important debate certainly in recent years. Our most solemn obligation to this country is to protect the American citizenry. In my view our colleagues on the other side of the aisle are playing a dangerous political game, and the American people are the pawns in this game. I bring to the Congress a unique experience. I worked in the Justice Department under the FISA statute. I have worked on national security wiretaps, and I can tell you that the statute was never intended to cover foreign targets in a foreign country. And if Osama bin Laden is on the phone calling into the United States, I think the American people want us to pay attention to that and to listen to that conversation. Intelligence, good intelligence has stopped every threat to this country since 9/11. Intelligence is the first line of defense in the war on terror. Without that, we cannot prevail in this war on terror, and we need to protect the American companies who we ask to protect the United States and the American people. They stood up to the plate, and it is our time to stand up to the plate and now protect them. They were doing their patriotic duty in a time of war when America asked them.
Editor's note · Context
Discussing national security and intelligence during a debate in Congress.
Share
More from Doc Hastings
On that I demand the yeas and nays. The yeas and nays were ordered. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, this 15- minute vote on adoption of the resolution will be followed by a 5- minute vote on the motion to suspend…
By direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 1017 and ask for its immediate consideration. The Clerk read the resolution, as follows: ____________________
I urge a ``yes'' vote on the resolution, and I yield the control of the remainder of my time to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren), the distinguished chairwoman of the Committee on House Administration. The SPEAKER pro tempore…
I would advise the gentleman that I have no further speakers, and I too am prepared to close.





