Bush approves court oversight on spying plan

Congress still has to approve the plan.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush has agreed conditionally to a court review of his antiterror eavesdropping operations under a deal that, for the first time, would open an important part of his once-secret surveillance to a constitutional test.
The disclosure of the agreement on Thursday came as the White House sought to end an impasse over a six-month-old dispute with Congress on the National Security Agency's program. It monitors the international calls and e-mails of Americans when terrorism is suspected.
Breaking with historic norms, the president had authorized the monitoring without a court warrant.
Under a deal with the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, Bush has agreed to support a bill that could submit the program to the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for a constitutional review.
"You have here a recognition by the president that he does not have a blank check," said Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa. As a leading critic of the program who had broken ranks with his party.
When the program was disclosed in December, it outraged Democrats and civil libertarians who said Bush overstepped his authority. On Thursday, advocacy groups dismissed the prospect of a judicial review as a sham.
Congress must approve the bill. Yet lawmakers have written at least a half dozen competing proposals and more are coming.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.