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US Senators Secretly Work to Block Safeguards Against Surveillance Abuse

Senator Mark Warner is trying to pass new limits on when the government can wiretap Americans. At least two senators are quietly trying to stop him.

As secret law, the exact nature of these businesses remains classified; however, it is widely believed that the government was seeking the power to compel the cooperation of US-based data centers in addition to service providers like AT&T and Google, which are among the more traditional targets of FISA directives. In remarks to the press and to colleagues on the Senate floor, Warner, a Democrat of Virginia, promised to address the concerns this summer, vowing to reporters that he was “absolutely committed” to refining the text that experts like Zwillinger warned would expand the intelligence community’s authority beyond reason. Another Senate source with knowledge of the objection says that Cornyn is specifically concerned about delays that he believes will result from the court’s increased reliance on the amici, viewing the process as potentially tying up cases in discovery battles as experts vie with the government for access to classified files.

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