WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is urging lawmakers to pass a bipartisan bill that would end the National Security Agency’s mass collection of Americans’ phone records, an effort that has been boosted by a federal appeals court ruling last week that held the program was unlawful.
The White House’s support for the USA Freedom Act, which preserves the government’s ability to obtain more limited amounts of records, comes as the House is expected to pass it Wednesday. That sets up a showdown in the Senate, where Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is backing another bill that would maintain the NSA program of mass collection and renew it through 2020.
The attorney general and the director of national intelligence are expected to issue soon a letter of support for the USA Freedom Act, saying that they do not think it will undermine national security while its proposed reforms will enhance Americans’ privacy.
There is a sense of urgency because time is running out for Congress to act on the issue. If lawmakers fail to pass a bill by June 1, the bulk collection of Americans’ phone records will automatically expire. The Obama administration has concluded that the USA Freedom Act is the best opportunity to maintain the government’s power to obtain records of terrorist suspects with some measure of speed.
“Last week’s judicial decision just underscores the need for Congress to take action now, so that these important national security authorities are not subject to continued uncertainty,” said National Security Council spokesman Edward Price.
The administration has long contended that the collection program was lawful. But after its existence was leaked in 2013 by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, the public outcry forced President Barack Obama to call for an end to the agency’s collection of so many records while seeking a way to preserve its access to the ones it needs. The government would serve a court order on phone companies for data on specific numbers or other “selection terms.”
The original program was begun in secret by the Bush administration after the September 2001 attacks. The NSA collects from U.S. phone companies all records of customers’ phone calls, their lengths and times, but not the content.
McConnell has support from the most hawkish members of his party, such as Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a presidential candidate who defended current practices in a USA Today editorial Monday.
But most analysts say that McConnell’s bill is likely to fail. Other Republican senators, including Kentucky’s Rand Paul, also a presidential candidate, and Utah’s Mike Lee, want curbs placed on the NSA’s surveillance authority. Paul has said that he would filibuster any bill that extends that authority without reforms. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., has vowed to do the same.
On Monday, Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., urged McConnell to bring the House bill to the floor, saying it would be “irresponsible” to extend the current statute in light of the court ruling. “How can you reauthorize something that is illegal?” he said. “You can’t. You shouldn’t.”
The statute authorizing the program is known as Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act, which requires that records sought by the government be “relevant” to an authorized investigation to protect against foreign terrorism.
