Surveillance Hearings Open Door to Secret Information

Sept. 20, 2007 — -- Despite concerns voiced by the U.S. head of intelligence operations that revealing details of wiretapping programs would result in American deaths, the White House's push for reform of the rules that govern the programs has opened the door for details to spill out during congressional hearings.

Such was the case Thursday in a hearing before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell discussed details about U.S. officials being required to get a court order to intercept communications of Iraqi insurgents who had captured four U.S. soldiers in Iraq May 12. The soldiers were part of the 10th Mountain Division.

"We have to abide by the law," McConnell told the committee.

According to officials briefed on the incident and McConnell's testimony, it took more than 12 hours for officials to approve the wiretap. A secret court order from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court in February required that a FISA warrant be obtained for any communications on U.S.-based circuits or fiber optic cables.

The ruling now requires that a warrant be obtained for intercepting foreign-to-foreign communications outside the United States if the targets of surveillance are communicating via U.S.-based fiber cable or circuit such as the Internet.

Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., asked McConnell, "So we had U.S. soldiers who were captured in Iraq by insurgents, and for the 12 hours immediately following their captures, you weren't able to listen to their communications."

McConnell said, "The reason I've tried to be as straightforward and open on this subject as I have [is] because it is so important that we get this right. Now, many are going to accuse me of declassifying information -- a warmonger, a fearmonger, whatever. We've got to get this right because sometimes those timelines are so tight."

Some committee members questioned McConnell's credibility, especially comments he made to the El Paso Times last month that Americans would die because of open testimony in Congress. In that interview, McConnell was asked by the reporter, "So you're saying that the reporting and the debate in Congress mean that some Americans are going to die?"