The NYT goes to war-and President Bush fights back

Decision Brief     No. 05-D 64                                        2005-12-17

(Washington, D.C.): On December 16, the Nation’s so-called “paper of record” joined the War for the Free World. Unfortunately, the New York Times entered the fray on the side of America’s enemies.

In a lengthy front-page article, the Times disclosed that, shortly after 9/11, President Bush had authorized the surveillance of certain individuals’ international phone calls and e-mails in which one of the parties was on American soil – without seeking warrants for such monitoring. The newspaper not only gave this revelation its most sensational spin – “Bush Lets U.S. Spy on Callers Without Courts” read the headline. It deliberately held the publication of this report for one year after being told the effect would be to damage national security, then published it on the day the Senate was scheduled to vote on the reenactment of the Patriot Act.

By so doing, the Times has compromised a highly sensitive intelligence program, possibly jeopardized the prosecution of individuals whose terrorist-related activities were discovered in the course of the surveillance it made possible and created the unfounded impression that Americans in general are at risk of such monitoring. Predictably, this irresponsible action caused some in the Senate to recoil from approving the reenactment of the Patriot Act – as though that legislation was somehow involved.

The President Responds

President Bush responded to this assault on his leadership, authority and integrity with what may be the most important presidential Saturday morning radio address since Ronald Reagan began the practice two decades ago. In it, he reminded the American people why the Patriot Act was important, then called for its immediate reenactment (emphasis added throughout):

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 home front. 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 two weeks. The terrorist threat to our country will not expire in two 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 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.

The President then went on to address the New York Times leak and the facts concerning the surveillance program he authorized shortly after 9/11:

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 Qaeda 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 Qaeda 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 Qaeda 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.

The Bottom Line

The decision by nearly all Senate Democrats (with the laudable exception of Senators Tim Johnson of South Dakota and Ben Nelson of Nebraska, who voted with all but four Republicans to extend the Patriot Act) to filibuster the reenactment of this legislation’s key provisions is further evidence that official Washington is suffering from an outbreak of unseriousness about the magnitude of the danger we face.

Defending a free society in time of war – especially a war against a totalitarian ideology like Islamofascism, which has taken hold in our own country and is adept at exploiting our civil liberties against us – requires a balancing act between infringements on our rights and providing for our security.

The President appears to have struck that balance sensibly and he should be supported in his efforts to do so – both with respect to the Patriot Act and the need for its reenactment, and with respect to the classified surveillance of individuals in this country with direct links to terrorists.