    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [March 13, 2008]
    [Pages 367-369]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Intelligence Reform Legislation
    March 13, 2008

        Last month, House leaders declared that they needed 21 additional
    days to pass legislation giving our intelligence professionals the tools
    they need to protect America. That deadline passed last Saturday without
    any action from the House.
        This week, House leaders are finally bringing legislation to the
    floor. Unfortunately, instead of holding a vote on the good bipartisan
    bill that passed the United States Senate, they introduced a partisan
    bill that would undermine America's security. This bill is unwise. The
    House leaders know that the Senate will not pass it. And even if the
    Senate did pass it, they know I will veto it.
        Yesterday the Attorney General and
    the Director of National Intelligence
    sent a

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    leader to the Speaker explaining why the bill
    is dangerous to our national security. They cited a number of serious
    flaws in the bill, including the following.
        First, the House bill could reopen dangerous intelligence gaps by
    putting in place a cumbersome court approval process that would make it
    harder to collect intelligence on foreign terrorists. This is an
    approach that Congress explicitly rejected last August when bipartisan
    majorities in both Houses passed the Protect America Act. And it is an
    approach the Senate rejected last month when it passed a new--new
    legislation to extend and strengthen the Protect America Act by an
    overwhelming vote of 68 to 29.
        Now House leaders are proposing to undermine this consensus. Their
    partisan legislation would extend protections we enjoy as Americans to
    foreign terrorists overseas. It would cause us to lose vital
    intelligence on terrorist threats, and this is a risk that our country
    cannot afford to take.
        Second, the House bill fails to provide liability protection to
    companies believed to have assisted in protecting our Nation after the
    9/11 attacks. Instead, the House bill would make matters even worse by
    allowing litigation to continue for years. In fact, House leaders simply
    adopted the position that class-action trial lawyers are taking in the
    multibillion-dollar lawsuits they have filed. This litigation would
    undermine the private sector's willingness to cooperate with the
    intelligence community, cooperation that is absolutely essential to
    protecting our country from harm. This litigation would require the
    disclosure of state secrets that could lead to the public release of
    highly classified information that our enemies could use against us. And
    this litigation would be unfair because any companies that assisted us
    after 9/11 were assured by our Government that their cooperation was
    legal and necessary.
        Companies that may have helped us save lives should be thanked for
    their patriotic service, not subjected to billion-dollar lawsuits that
    will make them less willing to help in the future. The House bill may be
    good for class-action trial lawyers, but it would be terrible for the
    United States.
        Third, the House bill would establish yet another commission to
    examine past intelligence activities. This would be a redundant and
    partisan exercise that would waste our intelligence officials' time and
    taxpayers' money.
        The bipartisan House and Senate intelligence and judiciary
    committees have already held numerous oversight hearings on the
    Government's intelligence activities. It seems that House leaders are
    more interested in investigating our intelligence professionals than in
    giving them the tools they need to protect us. Congress should stop
    playing politics with the past and focus on helping us prevent terrorist
    attacks in the future.
        Members of the House should not be deceived into thinking that
    voting for this unacceptable legislation would somehow move the process
    along. Voting for this bill does not move the process along. Instead,
    voting for this bill would make our country less safe because it would
    move us further away from passing the good bipartisan Senate bill that
    is needed to protect America.
        The American people understand the stakes in this struggle. They
    want their children to be safe from terror. Congress has done little in
    the 3 weeks since the last recess, and they should not leave for their
    Easter recess without getting the Senate bill to my desk.
        Thank you.

    Note: The President spoke at 9:20 a.m. on the South Lawn at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Attorney General Michael B.
    Mukasey. He also referred to H.R. 3773.

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