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Politics

Judge criticizes Bush for warrentless wiretaps

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published June 24, 2007

WASHINGTON

A federal judge who used to authorize wiretaps in terrorist and espionage cases criticized President Bush's decision to order warrantless surveillance after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Royce Lamberth, a district court judge in Washington, said Saturday that it was proper for executive branch agencies to conduct such surveillance.

"But what we have found in the history of our country is that you can't trust the executive, " he said at the American Library Association's convention.

"We have to understand you can fight the war (on terrorism) and lose everything if you have no civil liberties left when you get through fighting the war, " said Lamberth, who was appointed by President Ronald Reagan.

The judge disagreed with letting the executive branch alone decide which people to spy on in national security cases.

"We still have to preserve our civil liberties, " he said. "Judges are the kinds of people you want to entrust that kind of judgment to more than the executive."

Democrat slams Bush on VA bill

President Bush's congressman said Saturday that the administration and Republicans put a higher priority on tax cuts than on veterans' health care. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Texas, said the House has sent Bush a $64.7-billion spending bill to fund Veterans Affairs. That includes a $6-billion increase for veterans health care, $3.8-billion more than Bush had requested, Edwards said. "For weeks, the White House budget office threatened to veto this bill, because it was above their request, " Edwards said in the Democrats' weekly radio address. "Fortunately, the president finally backed down."

Bush pushes immigration plan

President Bush urged lawmakers Saturday to "summon the political courage" to support his top domestic priority, an immigration overhaul that is hanging by a thread in Congress. "We have an obligation to solve problems that have been piling up for decades, " Bush said in his weekly radio address. "The status quo is unacceptable."

[Last modified June 24, 2007, 00:33:46]