Durch Thomas Ferraro

Der Demokratisch-führende US Kongreß erbrachte dem Präsidenten George Bush am Samstag und erweiterte vorübergehend die Energie der Regierung, auf fremden Verdächtigen ohne einen Gerichtsbefehl elektronisch auszuspionieren.

Zivilfreiheiten, die Gruppen das Maß aufluden, würden ein ausgedehntes Netz verursachen, das herauf gesetzestreu US Bürger fegen würde. Aber das Repräsentantenhaus genehmigte die Rechnung durch 227 Stimmen bis 183, einen Tag nach Senatzustimmung, durch 60 Stimmen bis 28.

„Nach Monaten des Stoßens durch Hausrepublikaner, Kongreß hat schließlich den Terroristschlitz in unserem überwachunggesetz geschlossen - und Amerika ist für es,“ erklärter Hausminoritätführer John Boehner, ein Ohio Republikaner das sicherere.

With legislators to begin a month-long recess this weekend, Bush had called on them to stay until they passed the legislation.

“Protecting America is our most solemn obligation,” Bush said earlier in the day.

The measure authorises the National Security Agency to intercept communications between people in the US and foreign targets overseas.

The administration has to submit to a secret court a description of the procedures used to ensure that surveillance without a warrant only targeted people outside the US.

The court, set up by the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa ), would review the procedures and may order changes . The administration could appeal.

Fisa now requires the government to obtain orders from its court to conduct surveillance of suspected terrorists in the US.

But after the September 11 attacks, Bush authorised warrantless interception of communications between people in the US and others overseas if one of them was suspected of terrorist ties. Critics charged that programme violated the law, but Bush argued he had wartime powers to do so.

In January, Bush put the programme under the supervision of the Fisa court, but the terms have not been made public.

Congress has subpoenaed documents in an effort to determine Bush’s legal justification for the warrantless surveillance.

The new bill was needed in part, aides said, because of restrictions recently imposed by the secret court on spy agencies’ intercepting of communications. Congress has to come up with permanent legislation within six months.

Republicans earlier rejected a Democrat alternative providing greater court supervision.

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