W.House, senators spar over move to censure Bush - Yahoo! News

W.House, senators spar over move to censure Bush - Yahoo! News: "Mon Mar 13, 6:35 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Senate Democrat's move to censure
President George W. Bush for ordering domestic spying ignited heated debate among lawmakers on Monday and was dismissed by the White House as politically motivated.

Sen. Russ Feingold (news, bio, voting record) introduced the unusual measure on Monday saying in a Senate speech that 'this president has done wrong' in ordering the wiretapping program after the September 11 attacks.

'The president violated the law, ignored the Constitution and the other two branches of government and disregarded the rights and freedoms upon which our country was founded,' said Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat.
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Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has said the president has inherent constitutional powers to conduct warrantless surveillance to detect or prevent an attack.

He has also argued that a resolution passed by Congress after September 11 authorizing the use of military force gave Bush the right to approve the eavesdropping.

Democrats have urged a broad inquiry into the program. Republicans have blocked that move, agreeing only to expand congressional oversight.

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