The tools to fight the war on terror
January 24, 2008 | By Nathaniel Ward
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Congress must act promptly to ensure America’s intelligence agencies have the tools they needs to collect intelligence about terrorist activities, Vice President Dick Cheney said Wednesday at The Heritage Foundation.
» Read the transcript on Heritage’s “Foundry” weblog
» Watch the video of his speech
Language in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act allows intelligence agents to monitor international phone calls that happen to cross through America’s telecommunications network, he told the crowd in Heritage’s Allison Auditorium. But this provision is scheduled to expire on Feb. 1.
“A lot of international communications are actually routed through computers and cables inside the United States,” he explained. Before FISA was updated by the Protect America Act, “the U.S. sometimes could not monitor, without a finding of probable cause and a court order, one foreign citizen abroad making a telephone call to another foreign citizen abroad about terrorism, because of changes in technology.”
He further called on Congress to include liability protections for telecom companies that may have cooperated with intelligence-gathering efforts. A number of firms now face lawsuits from civil libertarians over their alleged work with the government, which remains classified.
Heritage: ‘A source of information and good advice’
During his Wednesday remarks, the Vice President touched on the importance of The Heritage Foundation, which he called “one of the great centers of scholarship, policy insight, and creativity in our nation’s capital.”
» Watch Cheney’s remarks about Heritage
Heritage, he said, has “certainly been a source of information and good advice for me over the years in my various public roles, from White House Chief of Staff, to Congressman, to Secretary of Defense, and now as Vice President.”
How to reform immigration
Election season is upon us and illegal immigration is sure to be a major issue on the campaign trail. It’s vital that candidates and the public are aware of the facts surrounding this critical debate.
Speaking Thursday at The Heritage Foundation, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) suggested a series of immigration reforms that candidates might consider. For example, he proposed a rejection of any “pathway to citizenship” and denial of federal funds to “sanctuary cities” that ignore immigration laws.
“Special interests, political correctness and partisan politics have prevented common-sense immigration reform,” Sessions said.
The next President, he continued, must “take charge and lead the Congress to provide laws and funds in support of this effort.”
The principles he outlined echo those proposed by Heritage scholars Matthew Spalding and Ed Meese. (Meese served as Attorney General under President Reagan.) Their plan would strengthen national security, uphold the rule of law, reject amnesty, emphasize legal immigration and citizenship and benefit the American economy.
Sessions worked closely with Heritage during the recent immigration debates. After Heritage experts brought to light the 2007 immigration “compromise,” which was in fact crafted behind closed doors, he thanked Heritage on the Senate floor.
—Chris Albright
Dealing with Pakistan
Congress has once again turned to a Heritage expert to get the facts. On Jan. 16, Heritage’s Lisa Curtis testified before members of Congress about U.S.-Pakistan relations.
“The situation in Pakistan is fluid and delicate,” she told a foreign relations subcommittee. “The U.S. should refrain from making abrupt policy changes, and instead remain engaged with both civilian politicians and the military leadership in an effort to ensure Pakistan weathers the current tumult.”
She continued: “The U.S. needs to exercise patience as Pakistan seeks to resolve its domestic turmoil, encouraging the democratic process and criticizing any further attempts by Musharraf to undermine it.”
‘Frequent recurrence to fundamental principles’
Too often, our leaders find themselves wrapped up in partisan disputes and stray off course as they lose sight of the core principles which should guide their decisions.
Our Founding Fathers were well aware of this difficulty, and believed it important to uphold principles. Matthew Spalding, director of Heritage’s Center for American Studies, points us to the 1776 Virginia Bill of Rights, which eloquently makes this point: “[N]o free government, or the blessings of liberty, can be preserved to any people, but by a firm adherence to justice, moderation, temperance, frugality, and virtue, and by frequent recurrence to fundamental principles.”
In other news
- President Bush has reached a deal with liberals in Congress on a misguided package to “stimulate” the economy, in part through discredited policies of government spending. Under this giveaway plan, which contains elements unlikely to spur economic growth, the government would give $600 to each taxpayer, plus an additional $300 for each child. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) promised further increases big-government spending if this plan fails to stimulate the economy.
- Late last year, President Bush quite rightly vetoed a dramatic increase in the size and scope of a government-run health care program. On Wednesday, Congress failed to override his veto of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program expansion. SCHIP continues in its previous form through next year.
- Palestinian gunman blew open a border wall between the Gaza Strip and Egypt on Wednesday.
- France has announced plans to freeze government spending for five years, the Financial Times reports. This policy reflects a commitment to fiscal restraint that many self-described conservatives in this country are unwilling to adopt.
Coming up at Heritage
To attend these or any other events at Heritage please RSVP at Heritage’s website. Or you can view these events live online. All times are Eastern.
- On Friday, Jan. 25 at 11:00 a.m., Zimbabwe’s shadow justice minister, David Coltart, discusses prospects for economic recovery and political reform in Zimbabwe.
Nathaniel Ward is the Editor of MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation. Chris Albright contributed to this report.