NYT: Republicans Seek to Bridge Differences on Surveillance

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/01/national/nationalspecial3/01spy.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Republicans Seek to Bridge Differences on Surveillance

WASHINGTON, Feb 28 — Stepping into the growing debate in his party about the Bush administration's domestic eavesdropping, the Republican leader Bill Frist pushed a group of Republican senators on Tuesday to work out conflicting approaches to legislation to address the program.

Senator Frist's efforts reflect the increasing determination of Republican lawmakers to impose some form of oversight on the program, through which the administration has secretly sidestepped the existing legal authorities for years to spy on thousands of domestic communications with terror suspects abroad. But lawmakers and staff members leaving a meeting called by Mr. Frist said deep disagreement remained within the party over how to rein in the administration.

In a statement after the meeting, Mr. Frist said his "informal working group" had "produced great progress in unifying senators around a core approach to terrorist surveillance legislation."

He also made clear his own support for the program, calling it "constitutional, lawful and critical," and he said the proposals discussed would "buttress" the program by providing statutory authority.