[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 2464]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  FISA: PRESIDENT AND REPUBLICANS PLAY POLITICS WITH NATIONAL SECURITY

  (Mr. PALLONE asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, President Bush and congressional 
Republicans are playing politics with our national security. They're 
falsely claiming that the expiration of a temporary provision of the 
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is endangering America and 
compromising our national security. If that is indeed the case, why did 
the President threaten to veto any extension of his own law? And why 
did every House Republican vote against a 21-day extension of the law 
earlier this month?
  If the expiration of this law would, indeed, endanger the American 
public as Republicans suggest, wouldn't House Republicans do everything 
in their power to actually keep the law in place? And despite all this 
fearmongering, House Republicans know that all of our electronic 
surveillance capabilities are still in place.
  Mr. Speaker, while the White House and congressional Republicans play 
games with our national security, congressional Democrats will continue 
to work to pass a final FISA bill that will give our intelligence 
community the tool it needs to protect our Nation while we also protect 
our citizens' civil liberties.

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