McMorris has spying ‘concerns’

U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris said she’s concerned and surprised about reports the government was spying on citizens without proper authority, and doesn’t think President Bush has been as forthcoming yet as he should be.

“It makes me nervous to think that our government was listening to our telephone conversations,” she told The Spokesman-Review editorial board Wednesday. “I have concerns about the president exceeding his authority.”

The Eastern Washington Republican said Congress needs to determine whether the president had the power to allow the National Security Agency to conduct wiretaps without court approval after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The domestic spying, revealed last week by the New York Times, has prompted criticism from congressional leaders of both parties.

“I think the first question is … whether the president had the power to implement this program,” she said. “And then second, to see if there’s been abuse.”

McMorris said she supported the reauthorization of the Patriot Act because it contained provisions that require Congress to review and pass it again in four years.

The bill was stalled in the Senate until Wednesday night, when a six-month extension was approved as a compromise. The House now must consider that extension.

Speaking before the Senate reached its compromise, McMorris said she hopes the new bill will contain “a clear authority as to the president’s powers” on wiretapping and offer ways to “draw the line” to protect against internal and external threats without infringing on individual rights.

“How do you show suspicion and ensure that these are suspects and not just your average Americans?” she said.

As she looked back on her first year in Congress, McMorris said she remains supportive of the U.S. military presence in Iraq and sees that country’s recent parliamentary elections as a milestone.

“I’m hopeful that we will start seeing the troops come home” in 2006, she said. But she said constituents rarely ask about the war and seem more worried about the rising cost of health care, immigration reform and energy.

She supports oil and gas exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and recently voted for the defense appropriations bill that included a provision to allow that activity even though the bill was becoming loaded up like a Christmas tree.

Now she’s confused why the defense appropriations bill stalled Wednesday in the Senate under the threat of a filibuster over drilling in the refuge: “They were the ones that first put ANWR on the defense bill. The House agreed and the Senate is now moving in a different direction.”

One thing that surprised the freshman congresswoman was how partisan and divisive the federal government is. There seems to be a fight over every bill, every amendment and every statement, she said.

There’s also some disappointment among Republicans, who have waited for years to control both houses of Congress and the White House, and now feel “like we’ve blown our big opportunity,” she said. The administration seemed to lose focus earlier in 2005 – distracted perhaps by questions surrounding presidential adviser Karl Rove – but seems to have improved recently.

“I think the last couple of months have been a wake-up call,” she said.