VOICE OF AMERICA
SLUG: 2-319799 Congress Intel
DATE:
NOTE NUMBER:
DATE=10/20/04
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CONGRESS/INTEL (L)
NUMBER=2-319799
BYLINE=DAN ROBINSON
DATELINE=CAPITOL HILL
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
HEADLINE: Congress Meets to Flesh Out Details of Intelligence Reform
INTRO: Congressional negotiators have formally begun the difficult task of reconciling House and Senate bills to reorganize the U.S. intelligence system. VOA's Dan Robinson reports, their first meeting was marked by some partisan disagreement over how to come up with a compromise bill President Bush could sign before the U.S. election on November 2nd, implementing recommendations of the 9-11 Commission that investigated the September 2001 terrorist attacks.
TEXT: Congressman Peter Hoekstra, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, opened the meeting by confirming the obvious -- that negotiations are likely to continue for days.
With families of victims of the September 11 (2001) terrorist attacks looking on, he laid out what he described as the central purpose, to implement recommendations of the 9-11 Commission:
/// HOEKSTRA ACT ///
"The primary objective of the commission's effort must be our guiding principle. How can we protect the American people from the tragedy that was inflicted upon us on September 11, 2001? Each provision must be measured against a bedrock standard - does it make the American people safer?"
/// END ACT ///
House Republicans earlier this month prevented Democrats from altering House legislation to mirror a bill approved overwhelmingly (96 to 2) by the Senate.
Both bills would trigger extensive changes in the way the U.S. intelligence system is organized, and how various agencies contribute to the war on terrorism.
Each of the bills supports main 9-11 Commission recommendations to create a new National Intelligence Director, and a Counter-Terrorism Center.
While all agree on the objective, Democrats assert the version approved by the House, and crafted solely by majority Republicans, fully implements only 11 of 41 commission recommendations.
The House bill provides less budget flexibility to the intelligence director, and would keep the total amount of money spent on intelligence secret, while the Senate bill wants to declassify such information.
Senator Joseph Lieberman, Democratic a co-sponsor of the Senate's bipartisan bill, urged conferees to remember the main goal:
/// LIEBERMAN ACT ///
"Now the responsibility we have is to reconcile the differences between the two bills, to find common ground, and to present the American people with what they are entitled to, which is our pledge that we have done everything we humanly can to protect them from anything like 9-11, anything of that scope happening again."
/// END ACT ///
One difficult issue remains House Republican insistence on giving authorities stronger powers to track, detain or deport illegal immigrants or those suspected of terrorist connections.
The Senate bill does not contain these provisions, but does propose a special board to watch over civil liberties and privacy concerns stemming from new legislation.
/// OPT /// Senator Susan Collins is the Republican co-sponsor of the bipartisan Senate legislation:
/// COLLINS ACT ///
"We need to ensure that the civil liberties of Americans are not jeopardized by the vigorous prosecution of the war against terrorism. "
/// END ACT END OPT ///
The Bush administration this week detailed where it agrees or disagrees with various provisions of the House and Senate bills, among other things endorsing greater budget authority for an intelligence director.
Lawmakers and their staffs are expected to work at least through the end of this week, largely behind closed doors, to overcome the sharpest differences between the two bills.
Success would enable President Bush to sign legislation implementing recommendations of the independent bipartisan 9-11 Commission before the November 2nd presidential election.
Wednesday's negotiating session provided a glimpse of how difficult that will be, as Democrats and Republicans sparred (disagreed) over how to speed up the process.
Work would have to conclude by the end of next week so Congress could be called back to vote on a final compromise. Several lawmakers say they are more concerned about "getting it right" than meeting any pre-election deadline. (signed)
NEB/DAR/MEM
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