January 5, 2007
Bush claims right to open mail
Bush claims right to open mail
'Signing statement' covers emergencies and foreign intelligence; critics say it evades limits
By Dan Eggen
The Washington Post
WASHINGTON -- President Bush signed a little-noticed statement last month asserting the authority to open U.S. mail without judicial warrants in emergencies or foreign intelligence cases.
The revelation prompted warnings Thursday from Democrats and privacy advocates that the administration was attempting to circumvent legal restrictions on its powers.
A "signing statement" attached to a postal reform bill Dec. 20 says the Bush administration "shall construe" a section of that law to allow the opening of sealed mail to protect life, guard against hazardous materials or conduct "physical searches specifically authorized by law for foreign intelligence collection."
Officials with the White House and the U.S. Postal Service said the statement was not intended to expand the powers of the executive branch, but merely to clarify ones that already exist for extreme cases.
"This is not a change in law, this is not new, it is not . . . a sweeping new power by the president," spokesman Tony Snow told reporters. "It is, in fact, merely a statement of present law and present authorities granted to the president of the United States."
But some civil liberties and national-security law experts said the statement's language is vague and appears to go beyond long-recognized limits on the ability of the government to open letters and other U.S. mail without approval from a judge.
Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies in Washington, said the government has long been able to legally open mail believed to contain a bomb or other imminent threat. But authorities are generally required to seek a warrant from a criminal or special intelligence court in other cases, Martin and other experts said.
"The administration is playing games about warrants," Martin said. "If they are not claiming new powers, then why did they need to issue a signing statement?"
Administration critics said they were confused because the relevant portion of the postal reform legislation -- which prohibits opening mail without warrants in most circumstances -- remains unchanged from previous statutes.
A White House official, who was not authorized to speak on the record, said the signing statement, which was first revealed by the New York Daily News, was intended only to make clear that the new law would not limit the ability of the president or attorney general to open mail under emergency provisions of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which governs clandestine spying in the U.S. That law allows authorities to conduct searches and surveillance without warrants in emergency situations, although they are required to apply for a warrant later.
"The point was that because Congress was passing this anew, the concern was that there would be some confusion," the official said. "The law that's been around since 1978 still allows you to conduct warrantless physical searches under some circumstances, and nothing changes that authority."
Last year, Bush authorized a program that allows the National Security Agency to monitor telephone calls and e-mails between the U.S. and overseas without court oversight.
By Dan Eggen
The Washington Post
WASHINGTON -- President Bush signed a little-noticed statement last month asserting the authority to open U.S. mail without judicial warrants in emergencies or foreign intelligence cases.
The revelation prompted warnings Thursday from Democrats and privacy advocates that the administration was attempting to circumvent legal restrictions on its powers.
A "signing statement" attached to a postal reform bill Dec. 20 says the Bush administration "shall construe" a section of that law to allow the opening of sealed mail to protect life, guard against hazardous materials or conduct "physical searches specifically authorized by law for foreign intelligence collection."
Officials with the White House and the U.S. Postal Service said the statement was not intended to expand the powers of the executive branch, but merely to clarify ones that already exist for extreme cases.
"This is not a change in law, this is not new, it is not . . . a sweeping new power by the president," spokesman Tony Snow told reporters. "It is, in fact, merely a statement of present law and present authorities granted to the president of the United States."
But some civil liberties and national-security law experts said the statement's language is vague and appears to go beyond long-recognized limits on the ability of the government to open letters and other U.S. mail without approval from a judge.
Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies in Washington, said the government has long been able to legally open mail believed to contain a bomb or other imminent threat. But authorities are generally required to seek a warrant from a criminal or special intelligence court in other cases, Martin and other experts said.
"The administration is playing games about warrants," Martin said. "If they are not claiming new powers, then why did they need to issue a signing statement?"
Administration critics said they were confused because the relevant portion of the postal reform legislation -- which prohibits opening mail without warrants in most circumstances -- remains unchanged from previous statutes.
A White House official, who was not authorized to speak on the record, said the signing statement, which was first revealed by the New York Daily News, was intended only to make clear that the new law would not limit the ability of the president or attorney general to open mail under emergency provisions of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which governs clandestine spying in the U.S. That law allows authorities to conduct searches and surveillance without warrants in emergency situations, although they are required to apply for a warrant later.
"The point was that because Congress was passing this anew, the concern was that there would be some confusion," the official said. "The law that's been around since 1978 still allows you to conduct warrantless physical searches under some circumstances, and nothing changes that authority."
Last year, Bush authorized a program that allows the National Security Agency to monitor telephone calls and e-mails between the U.S. and overseas without court oversight.
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