[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 51 (Monday, December 26, 2005)]
[Pages 1880-1882]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

December 17, 2005

    Good morning. As President, I took an oath to defend the 
Constitution, and I have no greater responsibility than to protect our 
people, our freedom, and our way of life. On September the 11th, 2001, 
our freedom and way of life came under attack by brutal enemies who 
killed nearly 3,000 innocent Americans. We're fighting these enemies 
across the world. Yet in this first war of the 21st century, one of the 
most critical battlefronts is the homefront. And since September the 
11th, we've been on the offensive against the terrorists plotting within 
our borders.
    One of the first actions we took to protect America after our Nation 
was attacked was to ask Congress to pass the PATRIOT Act. The PATRIOT 
Act tore down the legal and bureaucratic wall that kept law enforcement 
and intelligence authorities from sharing vital information about 
terrorist threats. And the PATRIOT Act allowed Federal investigators to 
pursue terrorists with tools they already used against other criminals. 
Congress passed this law with a large, bipartisan majority, including a 
vote of 98-1 in the United States Senate.
    Since then, America's law enforcement personnel have used this 
critical law to prosecute terrorist operatives and supporters and to 
break up terrorist cells in New York, Oregon, Virginia, California, 
Texas, and Ohio. The PATRIOT Act has accomplished exactly what it was 
designed to do: It has protected American liberty and saved American 
lives.
    Yet key provisions of this law are set to expire in 2 weeks. The 
terrorist threat to our country will not expire in 2 weeks. The 
terrorists want to attack America again and inflict even greater damage 
than they did on September the 11th. Congress has a responsibility to 
ensure that law enforcement and intelligence officials have the tools 
they need to protect the American people.
    The House of Representatives passed reauthorization of the PATRIOT 
Act. Yet a minority of Senators filibustered to block the renewal of the 
PATRIOT Act when it came up for a vote yesterday. That decision is 
irresponsible, and it endangers the lives of our

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citizens. The Senators who are filibustering must stop their delaying 
tactics, and the Senate must vote to reauthorize the PATRIOT Act. In the 
war on terror, we cannot afford to be without this law for a single 
moment.
    To fight the war on terror, I am using authority vested in me by 
Congress, including the Joint Authorization for Use of Military Force, 
which passed overwhelmingly in the first week after September the 11th. 
I'm also using constitutional authority vested in me as Commander in 
Chief.
    In the weeks following the terrorist attacks on our Nation, I 
authorized the National Security Agency, consistent with U.S. law and 
the Constitution, to intercept the international communications of 
people with known links to Al Qaida and related terrorist organizations. 
Before we intercept these communications, the Government must have 
information that establishes a clear link to these terrorist networks.
    This is a highly classified program that is crucial to our national 
security. Its purpose is to detect and prevent terrorist attacks against 
the United States, our friends, and allies. Yesterday the existence of 
this secret program was revealed in media reports, after being 
improperly provided to news organizations. As a result, our enemies have 
learned information they should not have, and the unauthorized 
disclosure of this effort damages our national security and puts our 
citizens at risk. Revealing classified information is illegal, alerts 
our enemies, and endangers our country.
    As the 9/11 Commission pointed out, it was clear that terrorists 
inside the United States were communicating with terrorists abroad 
before the September the 11th attacks, and the commission criticized our 
Nation's inability to uncover links between terrorists here at home and 
terrorists abroad. Two of the terrorist hijackers who flew a jet into 
the Pentagon, Nawaf al Hamzi and Khalid al Mihdhar, communicated while 
they were in the United States to other members of Al Qaida who were 
overseas. But we didn't know they were here until it was too late.
    The authorization I gave the National Security Agency after 
September the 11th helped address that problem in a way that is fully 
consistent with my constitutional responsibilities and authorities. The 
activities I have authorized make it more likely that killers like these 
9/11 hijackers will be identified and located in time. And the 
activities conducted under this authorization have helped detect and 
prevent possible terrorist attacks in the United States and abroad.
    The activities I authorized are reviewed approximately every 45 
days. Each review is based on a fresh intelligence assessment of 
terrorist threats to the continuity of our Government and the threat of 
catastrophic damage to our homeland. During each assessment, previous 
activities under the authorization are reviewed. The review includes 
approval by our Nation's top legal officials, including the Attorney 
General and the Counsel to the President. I have reauthorized this 
program more than 30 times since the September the 11th attacks, and I 
intend to do so for as long as our Nation faces a continuing threat from 
Al Qaida and related groups.
    The NSA's activities under this authorization are thoroughly 
reviewed by the Justice Department and NSA's top legal officials, 
including NSA's General Counsel and Inspector General. Leaders in 
Congress have been briefed more than a dozen times on this authorization 
and the activities conducted under it. Intelligence officials involved 
in this activity also receive extensive training to ensure they perform 
their duties consistent with the letter and intent of the authorization.
    This authorization is a vital tool in our war against the 
terrorists. It is critical to saving American lives. The American people 
expect me to do everything in my power under our laws and Constitution 
to protect them and their civil liberties. And that is exactly what I 
will continue to do, so long as I'm the President of the United States.
    Thank you.

Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from the Roosevelt Room at the 
White House. In his address, he referred to the National Commission on 
Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission). The Office 
of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of 
this address.

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