New wiretapping bill dubbed ‘repugnant’ and ‘a capitulation’

Think Progress
Thursday, June 19, 2008

Under a “compromise” wiretapping bill the House is expected to approve tomorrow, U.S. phone companies that cooperated with President Bush’s warrantless wiretapping program after Sept. 11 “could be shielded from lawsuits” as long as “there is written certification that the White House asked a phone company to participate and assured it” of the program’s legality. However, as critics of the deal have noted, there isn’t much to the bill that constitutes a “compromise”:

– Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI): “The proposed FISA deal is not a compromise; it is a capitulation. … Allowing courts to review the question of immunity is meaningless when the same legislation essentially requires the court to grant immunity.”
FULL ARTICLE @ Think Progress