Bush presses Congress to extend domestic spying

BUSH PRESSES CONGRESS TO EXTEND DOMESTIC SPYING
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Tabassum Zakaria]
President George W. Bush urged Congress on Wednesday to expand the government's domestic spying powers permanently or risk leaving the country vulnerable to another terrorist attack. President Bush said the 1978 law on surveillance was "dangerously out of date" and unable to deal with evolving technology such as disposable cell phones and the Internet. The law must be changed to give intelligence agencies the tools needed to prevent attacks on American soil. "Without these tools it'll be harder to figure out what our enemies are doing to train, recruit and infiltrate operatives into America," Bush said during a visit to the National Security Agency, which conducts surveillance of electronic communications on targets around the world. The White House also wants retroactive liability protection for telecommunications firms that helped the government in the warrantless spying program and now face lawsuits. Some Democrats also support protection for the firms.
http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN1927542620070919