The Senate is preparing to vote on legislation to renew the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), the 1970s law that
governs intelligence-gathering. The executive branch must have the
powers it needs to protect Americans from acts of war by foreign
enemies. The following is a list of Heritage Foundation research on
FISA.
Congress Must
Stop Playing Politics with FISA and National
Security
by James Jay Carafano, Ph.D., Robert Alt, and Andrew M. Grossman
January 31, 2008
Congress's 15-day extension of the Protect America Act puts
intelligence-gatherers in an impossible situation. Congress must
make the authorities in the Protect America Act permanent and
enhance its provisions to provide retroactive and permanent
liability protection to American businesses that cooperate with
reasonable Intelligence requests.
The
Intelligence Community Needs Clear-and Permanent-FISA
Reform
by Robert Alt, Todd F. Gaziano, and Brian
Walsh
January 25, 2008
The war on terrorism is not a brief skirmish but a long war, and
the tools needed to wage it should therefore not be hobbled by
artificial expiration dates imposed for political advantage.
Will Congress
Permanently Close Scary Intelligence Gap?
by Michael Franc
October 27, 2007
Last week, House leaders were pressing ahead with legislation
that would dramatically hamper the ability of U.S. field commanders
and Intelligence officers to win the war in Iraq.
Free the
Hostages
by K. A. Taipale and James Jay Carafano, Ph.D.
October 25, 2007
Private telecommunications carriers are caught in the middle of
a purely political power struggle, raising the possibility that
these vital partners in anti-terror intelligence-gathering will be
unwilling and unable to participate in future security
operations.
Modernize
FISA, But Don't Hobble American Intelligence
Operations
by Brian Walsh and Todd F. Gaziano
October 16, 2007
The "Responsible Electronic Surveillance that is Overseen,
Reviewed, and Effective Act of 2007" (RESTORE Act) would impose a
Byzantine and unprecedentedly burdensome Intelligence regime on
those charged with protecting Americans from international
terrorists.
Fixing
Surveillance
by K. A. Taipale and James Jay Carafano, Ph.D.
January 27, 2006
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) is no longer
adequate. Congress should amend FISA to provide for programmatic
approvals of cutting-edge technologies-including automated
monitoring of suspected terrorist communications.