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July 5, 2008

Carney is prodded to sign on to surveillance bill

House GOP Whip wants 10th District congressman to sign petition to move legislation.

By Bill O'Boyle boboyle@timesleader.com
Times Leader Staff Writer
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House Republican Whip Roy Blunt of Missouri is trying to get U.S. Rep. Chris Carney to become the first Democrat to sign a discharge petition that would force the Foreign Intelligence Security Act to the House floor.

Carney, D-Dimock Township, is on record supporting the Senate bill: He is one of 21 Democrats who wrote a letter of support for the proposal to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Jan. 28.

House Republicans have targeted Carney in their effort to force consideration of the intelligence surveillance legislation favored by the Bush administration.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 outlines procedures for requesting judicial authorization for electronic surveillance and physical search of persons engaged in espionage or international terrorism against the United States on behalf of a foreign power. An overhaul of the bill, the Protect America Act of 2007, expired Feb. 16. Since then, efforts to track and monitor foreign-to-foreign communications between suspected terrorists abroad have been curtailed.

“If Mr. Carney is sincere in his view that fixing the terrorist loophole in our intelligence laws is of vital importance – and that failing to do so will ‘place our national security at undue risk’ – he’s in a unique position to fix it,” said Chris Tucker, communications adviser in Blunt’s office. “All we’ve asked him to do is remain consistent with his previous pronouncements … .”

Carney was in session Tuesday. His spokeswoman Rebecca Gale said the issue was “not something to be turned into a political game.

“Publishing personal correspondence is in poor taste for issues of national security,” she said.

“Our office has always been willing to work in a bipartisan way to do what is best for the country.”

His Republican challenger, Chris Hackett, urged Carney to sign the petition and “drop his partisan approach that threatens our security, and join those who are attempting to force a House vote on the FISA bill.”

Hackett said national security should be a top priority.

“It’s most unfortunate that Chris Carney says he’s for a tough terrorist surveillance bill, but when he has the chance to actually do something about it, he takes a pass,” Hackett said.

Bill O’Boyle, a Times Leader staff writer, can be reached at 829-7218.

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