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| Uploaded on Sunday 7 February, 2021 to the espionage ring |
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| President Bush calls for immunity for telecoms companies in wiretap legislation |
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A public scandal over wiretapping had placed George W. Bush's presidency in jeopardy just as he was vying for reelection. The New York Times journalist James Risen had first uncovered the story in October of 2004, but it received no coverage that year after deals were struck between the White House and Messrs. Arthur Ochs Sulzberger and Bill Keller of the New York Times respectively. That all changed when the New York Times made the story public in December of 2005 after its hand was forced by James Risen who declared his intention to publish it in a book he authored. The New York Times was scorned for its election interference in withholding the story at such a crucial time in the 2004 election.
With the genie now out of the bottle, telecoms companies would no longer acquiesce to unlawful wiretapping or passing records over to the government without public consent for fear of litigation, unless a law was enacted that would retroactively immunize them from prosecution. This gave rise to the Protect America Act, which was signed into law on August 2007 until it expired on February 2008 due to the sunset provision. An extension was denied by Congress, triggering President Bush's ire on the 13th of February, 2008. |
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