Congressional Record: March 7, 2006 (Senate)
Page S1829
PRIVACY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES OVERSIGHT BOARD
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, recent press reports reveal that despite
its creation more than a year ago, the Privacy and Civil Liberties
Oversight Board has yet to hire any staff members or even hold a single
meeting. This board was established by a law signed in December 2004 in
response to recommendations from the 9/11 Commission. Now, several
months into 2006, we learn from a Newsweek article that the board's
members will finally be sworn in at the White House this month. I will
ask unanimous consent that a copy of this article be printed in the
Record. Starting up the work of this important board, particularly in
this time of unprecedented intrusion into the privacy of Americans by
the executive branch, is shamefully overdue.
On December 14, 2004, the President signed into law the Intelligence
Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. Section 1061 of this act
implemented a 9/11 Commission recommendation to establish an
independent board within the Executive Office of the President to fill
a clear void in Government for protecting Americans' liberties.
Creating the board was no easy feat. The Bush-Cheney administration
initially resisted the 9/11 Commission's recommendation for a privacy
board, unpersuasively asserting that it was already protecting privacy
and civil liberties. The administration then tried to circumvent a
congressionally authorized, independent board by issuing an Executive
order establishing an anemic alternative. That entity was not
independent, had no authority to access information, had little
accountability, and was comprised solely of administration officials
from the law enforcement and intelligence communities--the very
communities in need of oversight. It was the proverbial case of the fox
guarding the henhouse. But many of us in Congress were committed to
creating an effective board in keeping with the 9/11 Commission's
recommendations.
We succeeded, and the President signed the bill creating the board
well over a year ago, but the White House's delays and resistance
continued. Last May 11, I joined Senators Durbin, Collins, and
Lieberman in writing to the President to inquire why there had not yet
been any nominations and to urge him to nominate board members as soon
as possible. We also expressed concern about the inadequate funding in
the White House budget proposal, which would only have provided an
underwhelming and insufficient $750,000 for its operations.
Fortunately, the Transportation, Treasury, and HUD Appropriations
Subcommittee, on which I serve, raised the amount to $1.5 million to
ensure a better start for the board.
President Bush waited until June of last year to appoint three
members of the board, and to nominate the chairman and vice chairman of
the board, who were confirmed by the Senate last month. No board
members have yet been sworn in. Meanwhile, as Newsweek reported, the
White House's new budget, released last month, listed no money for the
Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. Administration officials
have said that this omission came only because they decided not to
itemize funding for offices within the White House, but they could not
explain why other White House offices were individually listed, yet
this board was not.
Regrettably, the delays and insufficient funds suggest that the Bush-
Cheney administration is simply going through the motions, rather than
following through on a meaningful commitment to the Privacy Board. As
the Chairman of the 9/11 Commission said, ``The Administration was
never interested in this.''
This board is too important for us to simply go through the motions.
Prior to the board, there was no office within the Government to
oversee the collective impact of Government actions and powers on our
liberties. This is a critical blind spot. We have increased and
consolidated the authority of an already-powerful Government in an
effort to address the realities of terrorism and modern warfare. As Lee
Hamilton, Vice Chairman of the 9/11 Commission, noted in a Judiciary
Committee hearing on August 19, 2004, these developments represent ``an
astounding intrusion in the lives of ordinary Americans that is routine
today in government.''
In the months since Mr. Hamilton made this statement, we have learned
of reports of far more disturbing and unprecedented intrusions into the
lives of Americans, including warrantless wiretapping in violation of
the laws of the land, as well as surveillance of ordinary Americans
that may include a group of Quakers in Vermont. It is more important
than ever to have a meaningful entity ensuring that the Government
pursue crucial antiterrorism efforts without giving up the privacy and
civil liberties so important to all Americans.
The delays in setting up the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight
Board and the failures to properly fund it show that the Bush-Cheney
administration does not take this responsibility seriously. We must
make sure that we do take it seriously, on behalf of the American
people.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the Newsweek
article to which I referred.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From Newsweek, March 13, 2006 issue]
Watchdog: What Ever Happened to the Civil Liberties Board?
(By Michael Isikoff)
For more than a year, the Privacy and Civil Liberties
Oversight Board has been the most invisible office in the
White House. Created by Congress in December 2004 as a result
of the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, the board has
never hired a staff or even held a meeting. Next week,
NEWSWEEK has learned, that is due to finally change when the
board's five members are slated to be sworn in at the White
House and convene their first session. Board members tell
NEWSWEEK the panel intends to immediately tackle contentious
issues like the president's domestic wiretapping program, the
Patriot Act and Pentagon data mining. But critics are furious
the process has taken this long--and question whether the
White House intends to treat the panel as anything more than
window dressing. The delay is ``outrageous, considering how
long its been since the bill [creating the board] was
passed,'' said Thomas Kean, who chaired the 9/11 Commission.
``The administration was never interested in this.''
Renewed concerns about the White House's commitment came
just a few weeks ago when President Bush's new budget was
released--with no listing for money for the civil liberties
board. Alex Conant, a spokesman for the Office of Management
and Budget, denied to NEWSWEEK the White House was trying to
kill the panel by starving it of funds. ``It will be fully
funded,'' he said, explaining that the board wasn't in the
budget this year because officials decided not to itemize
funding levels for particular offices within the White House.
When a reporter pointed out that funding for other White
House offices such as the National Security Council were
listed in the budget, Conant said: ``I have no explanation.''
The funding snafu is only the latest setback. Kean said the
9/11 Commission had pushed hard for the board to ensure that
some agency within the government would specifically review
potential abuses at a time vastly expanded powers were being
given to U.S. intel and law-enforcement agencies. But the
White House, and congressional leaders, resisted and sharply
restricted its scope, denying the board basic tools like
subpoena power. Bush didn't nominate members of the board
until June 2005--six months after the panel was created--and
they weren't confirmed until last month. The chair of the
board is Carol Dinkins, a former senior Justice official
under Ronald Reagan and former law partner of Attorney
General Alberto Gonzales. Dinkins did not respond to requests
for comment.
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