WASHINGTON, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. President George Bush Wednesday met with congressional leaders to urge passage of revisions to the government's surveillance authority before recessing.
White House spokesman Tony Snow told reporters the government currently is stymied in its ability to collect "as much intelligence as we need to."
At issue is the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, which lays down procedures for physical and electronic surveillance and collection of foreign intelligence.
"It's absolutely vital, at a time of a heightened threat environment, to realize that the present system simply is not as responsive as it needs to be in terms of providing the flexibility and speed in acting on actionable intelligence," Snow said. "And so we are making it clear to members of Congress that we expect them to try to get something done."
Snow said the White House had a 66-page proposal that was edited down to 11 pages, which serve as the basis of the discussion.
