The Fiscal Year 2008 Intelligence Authorization bill, along with the accompanying classified annex, provides vital support to our Intelligence Community, as well as the legal framework and policy guidance that is so critical to our national security. Indeed, congressional oversight has never been more important, as our nation seeks a new way forward, with an Intelligence Community focusing its resources on defending America while operating within the rule of law and with the informed support of the Congress.

One of the most important, as well as long overdue, areas for congressional oversight is the CIA's detention and interrogation program. I have opposed the program on moral, legal and national security grounds. For that reason, while I commend the Committee's increased scrutiny of the program, I cannot support the Committee's report language stating that the Congress must continue to evaluate whether having a separate CIA program with different interrogation rules than those applicable to military and law enforcement officers is necessary, lawful and in the best interests of the United States. It is my position that detainees should never be interrogated except as authorized by the United States Army Field Manual on Human Intelligence Collector Operations. I voted in favor of the amendment offered by Senator Whitehouse, which would have restricted the circumstances in which separate interrogation techniques can be employed, as a step forward.

Another critical priority for congressional oversight is government wiretapping of Americans, conducted under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, and, illegally, under the President's warrantless wiretapping program. When the program was finally placed within the FISA process, an opportunity arose for the Administration and the Congress to move forward, under the law. Unfortunately, the Administration has yet to demonstrate a real interest in doing so. First, the Administration has sought broad new authorities unrelated to keeping FISA up-to-date with new technology, and has pursued these authorities while refusing to rule out further surveillance activities entirely outside of the law. Second, the Administration has sought to impose a set of impediments to congressional oversight and responsible legislating. I am pleased, therefore, that the Committee has stated clearly that, before it can legislate, these impediments, including the Administration's refusal to provide critical documents related to the president's warrantless wiretapping program as well as efforts to limit staff access to the program, must be removed. I am also pleased that the Committee approved my amendment to the bill requiring the Attorney General to provide to the congressional intelligence and judiciary committees, in a timely manner, all orders, decisions, and opinions of the FISA Court and FISA Court of Review that contain significant construction or interpretation of the law, as well as associated pleadings. No responsible legislature can amend a statute without knowing how the courts have interpreted it. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is no exception.

For more than four years, the Administration failed to inform the full congressional intelligence committees of the warrantless wiretapping program. In doing so, the Administration violated the National Security Act, which allows restricted notification to the `Gang of Eight' only in certain limited cases involving covert action. In light of this abuse of the limited notification provision, I was pleased to co-sponsor an amendment offered by Senator Feinstein to ensure that all members of the Committee receive, at a minimum, summary information about programs that the Administration has sought to limit to the Chairman and Vice Chairman.

Another area about which the Congress needs more information is the large databases of information, including on American citizens, collected by the government, both inside and outside the Intelligence Community. The Committee has requested that the Secretary of the Treasury, in coordination with the Director of National Intelligence, report on databases of financial information and information on financial transactions maintained at the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence at the Department of the Treasury, including on access to and use of such databases, dissemination of information and minimization requirements and issues related to privacy and United States person information. This is an important step in Congress's efforts to develop a comprehensive understanding of all such programs throughout the government.

I have expressed concern about broad new arrest authorities granted to protective personnel at the CIA and NSA that have been included in previous intelligence authorization bills reported by the Committee. The Administration has yet to present a case that these new authorities are necessary. While I am disappointed that these provisions were included in this year's bill, I am pleased that the Committee's report clearly indicates that these authorities are not to be used except to protect the specific individuals to whom those CIA and NSA personnel are assigned, and that Congress is to be kept fully informed of how these authorities are used.

Finally, I was pleased to cosponsor two amendments offered by the Vice Chairman to ensure greater accountability and cost-savings in the Intelligence Community. The first granted the Director of National Intelligence authorities to conduct accountability reviews of significant failures or deficiencies within the Intelligence Community. The second requires the DNI to justify to the Congress cost overruns in major system acquisitions exceeding 20 percent, and for the President to justify cost overruns over 40 percent. These provisions are important steps in the ongoing effort to reform our Intelligence Community and demonstrate the Committee's bipartisan commitment to ensuring that our nation is defended effectively and efficiently and with real accountability for financial mismanagement and other wrongdoing.