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| February 6th, 2008 |
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Media Contact(s): Jared Whitley (202) 224-5251 |
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REVERSE TARGETING IS ALREADY ILLEGAL UNDER FISA
Hatch Opposes FISA Amdt #3913 |
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Washington - Sen. Orrin G. Hatch today offered the following remarks in support of legislation to modernize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Hatch opposes the partisan amendments that have been tacked onto the FISA bill as approved 13-2 by the Intelligence Committee in October 2007.
I want to very briefly mention my opposition to amendment #3913 offered by the Senator from Wisconsin. This amendment relates to reverse targeting, which is a theory that the government could target a foreign person abroad when the real intention is to target a US Person, thus circumventing the need to get a warrant for the US Person. Quite simply, reverse targeting is already considered illegal under FISA. Going even further, the Intelligence Committee’s bill has a very explicit prohibition against reverse targeting. The amendment offered by the Senator from Wisconsin adds subjective language which completely alters the clear meaning of the original bipartisan provision.
I asked Attorney General Mukasey about this during a hearing on Wednesday, and here is our exchange:
HATCH: Now, the topic of reverse targeting has been mentioned often during the FISA reform debate.
From an intelligence perspective, reverse targeting makes no sense.
From an efficiency standpoint, if the government was interested in targeting an American, it would apply for a warrant to listen to all of that person's conversations, wouldn't it?
Not just his conversations with terrorists overseas.
MUKASEY: Correct.
HATCH: Now, I asked Attorney General Wainstein about this during a Judiciary Committee hearing last October, and he reiterated the government's view that FISA itself makes reverse targeting illegal. Does the DOJ still consider reverse targeting illegal under FISA?
MUKASEY: Absolutely.
HATCH: Are you aware of any instances of intelligence analysts utilizing reverse targeting?
MUKASEY: I am not aware of any such instances.
We are enacting National Security Legislation, and it’s our responsibility to ensure that this bill does not lead to unintended consequences which provide protections to terrorists. This amendment is absolutely unnecessary and I urge my colleagues to oppose it.
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