MR. McCONNELL: LAST WEEK I PROPOSED GIVING THE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE THE TIME IT WOULD NEED TO WORK TOWARD THE BIPARTISAN LEGISLATIVE COMPROMISE AMERICANS DESERVE. A COMPROMISE THAT WOULD PRESERVE IMPORTANT COUNTERTERRORISM TOOLS THAT ARE NECESSARY TO PROTECT AMERICAN LIVES. THAT EFFORT WAS BLOCKED. JUST NOW, I PROPOSED AN EVEN NARROWER EXTENSION THAT WOULD HAVE ONLY EXTENDED SOME OF THE LEAST CONTROVERSIAL, LEAST CONTROVERSIAL, BUT STILL CRITICAL TOOLS TO ENSURE THEY DO NOT LAPSE AS SENATORS WORK TOWARDS A MORE COMPREHENSIVE LEGISLATIVE OUTCOME. BUT EVEN THAT VERY NARROW OFFER WAS BLOCKED. I THINK IT SHOULD BE WORRYING FOR OUR COUNTRY BECAUSE THE NATURE OF THE THREAT WE FACE IS VERY SERIOUS. IT'S A AGGRESSIVE, IT'S SOPHISTICATED, IT'S GEOGRAPHICALLY DISPERSE, AND IT'S NOT -- NOT -- GOING AWAY. AS THE "L.A. TIMES" REPORTED -- QUOTE -- "THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION HAS DRAMATICALLY STEPPED UP WARNINGS OF POTENTIAL TERRORIST ATTACKS ON AMERICAN SOIL AFTER SEVERAL YEARS OF RELATIVE CALM." AND THE PAPER REPORTED THAT THIS IS OCCURRING IN THE WAKE OF F.B.I. ARRESTS OF AT LEAST 30 AMERICANS ON TERRORISM-RELATED CHARGES THIS YEAR IN AN ARRAY, AN ARRAY, OF LONE WOLF PLOTS. SO THESE AREN'T THEORETICAL THREATS, MR. PRESIDENT. IT'S NOT A THREAT THREAT. THEY'RE WITH US EVERY DAY. WE HAVE TO FACE UP TO THEM. WE SHOULDN'T BE DISARMING UNILATERALLY AS OUR ENEMIES GROW MORE SOPHISTICATED AND AGGRESSIVE. AND WE CERTAINLY SHOULD NOT BE DOING SO BASED ON A CAMPAIGN OF DEMAGOGUERY AND DISINFORMATION LAUNCHED IN THE WAKE OF THE UNLAWFUL ACTIONS OF EDWARD SNOWDEN. WHO WAS LAST SEEN IN RUSSIA. THE OPPONENTS OF THIS PROGRAM NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO PROVIDE ANY, ANY EXAMPLES OF THE N.S.A. ABUSING THE AUTHORITIES PROVIDED UNDER SECTION 215. AND THE RECORD WILL SHOW THERE HAS, IN FACT, NOT BEEN ONE DOCUMENTED INSTANCE OF ABUSE OF IT. I THINK IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT THE CONTENT OF CALLS ARE NOT CAPTURES -- CAPTURED. THAT'S THE GENERAL VIEW, BUT IT'S AN INCORRECT ONE. I'LL SAY IT AGAIN. THE CONTENT OF CALLS ARE NOT CAPTURED. I SAY TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE IF YOU'VE BEEN TOLD THAT, THAT IS NOT CORRECT. THAT'S WHAT I AM ABOUT -- I MEAN ABOUT A CAMPAIGN OF DISINFORMATION. THE ONLY THINGS IN QUESTION ARE THE NUMBER DIALED, THE NUMBER FROM WHICH THE CALL WAS MADE, THE LENGTH OF THE CALL, AND THE DATE. THAT'S IT. THAT'S IT. DETAILED OVERSIGHT PROCEDURES HAVE BEEN PUT IN PLACE, TOO, IN ORDER TO PROTECT THE PRIVACY OF AMERICANS. NOW, I BELIEVE THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT STRIKES A CRITICAL BALANCE BETWEEN PRIVACY ON THE ONE HAND AND NATIONAL SECURITY ON THE OTHER. THAT DOESN'T MEAN THE SENATE STILL SHOULDN'T HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE SOME CHANGES TO IT. THAT'S PRECISELY THE OUTCOME I'D BEEN HOPING TO FACILITATE BY SEEKING SEVERAL SHORT-TERM EXTENSIONS. AND CONSIDERING ALL THAT'S COME TO LIGHT ABOUT THE HOUSE-PASSED BILL IN RECENT WEEKS, I BELIEVE THIS WAS MORE THAN REASONABLE. THE ADMINISTRATION'S INABILITY TO ANSWER EVEN THE MOST BASIC QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ALTERNATIVE BULK DATA SYSTEM IT WOULD HAVE TO BUILD UNDER THAT LEGISLATION IS TO SAY AT THE VERY LEAST, PRETTY TROUBLING. PRETTY TROUBLING. THAT'S NOT JUST MY VIEW. THAT'S THE VIEW OF MANY IN THIS BODY INCLUDING COLLEAGUES WHO HAVE BEEN FAVORABLY PREDISPOSED TO THE HOUSE BILL. IN PARTICULAR, I KNOW SENATORS FROM BOTH PARTIES HAVE BEEN DISTURBED BY THE ADMINISTRATION'S CONTINUING INABILITY TO GUARANTEE WHETHER THE NEW SYSTEM WOULD WORK AS WELL AS THE CURRENT ONE OR WHETHER THERE WOULD EVEN BE ANY DATA AVAILABLE TO ANALYZE. BECAUSE WHILE THE ADMINISTRATION HAS LET IT BE KNOWN THIS NONEXISTENT SYSTEM COULD ONLY BE BUILT IN TIME, IF TELEPHONE PROVIDERS COOPERATE IN BUILDING IT, PROVIDERS HAVE MADE IT ABUNDANTLY CLEAR THAT THEY'RE NOT GOING TO COMMIT TO RETAINING THE DATA. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO COMMIT TO RETAINING THE DATA FOR ANY PERIOD OF TIME UNLESS LEGALLY REQUIRED TO DO SO. AND THERE'S NO SUCH REQUIREMENT IN THE HOUSE-PASSED BILL. NONE AT ALL. HERE'S HOW ONE PROVIDER PUT IT. WE'RE NOT PREPARED TO COMMIT TO VOLUNTARILY RETAIN DOCUMENTS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PERIOD OF TIME PURSUANT TO THE PROPOSED U.S.A. FREEDOM ACT IF NOT REQUIRED BY LAW. IF NOT REQUIRED BY LAW. QUOTE-UNQUOTE. THESE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE REASONS I THOUGHT IT WAS PRUDENT TO TRY AND GIVE THE SENATE MORE SPACE TO ADVANCE BETTER LEGISLATION THROUGH COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION AND REGULAR ORDER WITH INPUT FROM BOTH SIDES. BUT MY COLLEAGUES, IT IS NOW CLEAR THAT THAT WILL NOT BE POSSIBLE IN THE FACE OF DETERMINED OPPOSITION FROM THOSE WHO SIMPLY WISH TO END THE COUNTERTERRORISM PROGRAM ALTOGETHER. NO TIME TO TRY TO IMPROVE THE HOUSE-PASSED BILL WILL BE ALLOWED BECAUSE SOME WOULD LIKE TO END THE PROGRAM ALTOGETHER. SO THIS IS WHERE WE FIND OURSELVES. THIS IS THE REALITY. AND SO IT ESSENTIALLY LEAVES US WITH TWO OPTIONS. OPTION ONE -- ALLOW THE PROGRAM TO EXPIRE ALTOGETHER WITHOUT ATTEMPTING TO REPLACE IT. THAT WOULD MEAN DISARMING COMPLETELY AND ASH TARELL BASED ON A CAMPAIGN OF DISINFORMATION IN THE FACE OF GROWING, AGGRESSIVE, AND SOPHISTICATED THREATS. GROWING, AGGRESSIVE, AND SOPHISTICATED THREATS. THAT'S A TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE OUTCOME. COMPLETELY AND TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE OUTCOME. SO WE WON'T BE DOING THAT. AND SO WE'RE LEFT WITH OPTION TWO. THE HOUSE-PASSED BILL. IT'S CERTAINLY NOT IDEAL. BUT ALONG WITH VOTES ON SOME MODEST AMENDMENTS THAT ATTEMPT TO ENSURE THE PROGRAM CAN ACTUALLY WORK AS PROMISED, IT'S NOW THE ONLY REALISTIC WAY FORWARD. SO I REMAIN DETERMINED TO CONTINUE WORKING TOWARD THE BEST OUTCOME FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE POSSIBLE UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES. THIS IS WHERE WE ARE, COLLEAGUES. A HOUSE-PASSED BILL WITH SOME SERIOUS FLAWS, AN INABILITY TO GET A SHORT-TERM EXTENSION TO TRY TO IMPROVE THE HOUSE-PASSED BILL AND THE WAY WOULD WOULD NORMALLY DO THIS THROUGH SOME KIND OF CONSULTATIVE PROCESS. SO BEARING THAT IN MIND, I MOVE TO PROCEED TO THE MOTION TO RECONSIDER VOTE NUMBER 194, THE VOTE BY WHICH CLOTURE WAS NOT INVOKED ON THE MOTION TO PROCEED TO H.R. 2048.
