Senate Bows to White House Pressure on FISA Bill

It's amazing what you can get done when people want to leave on vacation:

The Senate bowed to White House pressure last night and passed a Republican plan for overhauling the federal government's terrorist surveillance laws, approving changes that would temporarily give U.S. spy agencies expanded power to eavesdrop on foreign suspects without a court order.

The 60 to 28 vote, which was quickly denounced by civil rights and privacy advocates, came after Democrats in the House failed to win support for more modest changes that would have required closer court supervision of government surveillance. Earlier in the day, President Bush threatened to hold Congress in session into its scheduled summer recess if it did not approve the changes he wanted.

The legislation, which is expected to go before the House today, would expand the government's authority to intercept without a court order the phone calls and e-mails of people in the United States who are communicating with people overseas.

I'm guessing the House will quickly follow. After cheating to give illegal aliens taxpayer funded benefits and nearly creating a riot on the floor of the House, I don't think the Dems will have the stomach to fight a significant bill that helps protect Americans.

Besides that, all they really want to do is go on vacation.