Dodd sets stage set for debate over retroactive immunity for snooping telecoms

Yesterday's session ended with Chris Dodd (CT) promising to stop any revision of FISA that included retroactive immunity for telecom companies that helped the Bush administration listen in on private communications following the Sept. 11 2001 attacks. Dodd argued that the program did not last for two or three months but went on for five years. If we grant retroactive immunity, said Dodd, we will never know the full extent of the program. He explained one report of the program which described an AT&T hub in San Francisco that routed every call and text to an NSA server for archiving.

There is one crucial issue which I cannot quite figure out. Were the wiretapped conversations always involving (at least) one party overseas? That is to say, (1) either the call came from abroad or (2) the call originated in the U.S. but was made to a party abroad. Or, were some of the wiretapped conversations made from one domestic party to another?

This is some of what Dodd had to say yesterday:

“If after debate, the Senate appears ready to pass legislation granting telecom providers retroactive immunity I will use any and all legislative tools at my disposal, including a filibuster, to prevent this deeply flawed bill from becoming law.”

On his website, Dodd states:

When the Senate first considered this legislation on December 17, Senator Dodd defeated the attempt to pass the bill. Dodd objected to the bill early in the morning and remained on the floor for almost ten hours, taking a stand for the rule of law and the Constitution with his statements throughout the day. At approximately 7:30 P.M. Majority Leader Reid announced the FISA reform bill would be pulled from the Senate calendar and reconsidered in January.