Rockefeller fretted over U.S. wiretapping

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. John Rockefeller, D-W.Va., provided written proof he had serious concerns about domestic wiretapping as early as July 2003.

Rockefeller's decision to disclose a handwritten letter to Vice President Dick Cheney came as President George Bush defended himself for authorizing domestic wiretaps without seeking court orders.

"I am writing to reiterate my concerns regarding the sensitive intelligence issues we discussed today," Rockefeller wrote to Cheney following their meeting where Rockefeller was briefed on the wiretapping. Rockefeller's Senate Web site carried a release about the letter.

Rockefeller is his party's ranking member on the Senate Intelligence Committee and assumed his post in January 2003, but his staff said he wasn't briefed about the surveillance effort until the day he met with Cheney.

"The record needs to be set clear," Rockefeller said in a statement released with the letter.

The letter to Cheney also spoke of Rockefeller's plan to store a copy of it in a secure location.