Civil liberties not violated by spying, Bush says

WASHINGTON — President Bush defended the scope of the government's domestic surveillance programs that have riled privacy advocates and threatened to impede the Senate confirmation of Bush's new pick to lead the CIA.

"The privacy of all Americans is fiercely protected in all our activities," Bush said Saturday in his weekly radio address. "The government does not listen to domestic phone calls without court approval. We are not trolling through the personal lives of millions of innocent Americans."

Bush's broadcast comes two days after news reports revealed the ultra-secret National Security Agency was collecting the phone records of tens of millions of Americans.

USA Today reported Thursday that the NSA was building a database with the help of three major U.S. telephone companies — a revelation that highlights the problem of balancing American civil liberties with efforts to protect citizens from terrorist attacks.

Without specifically confirming the database effort, Bush defended the intelligence activities he has authorized, saying they are focused on al-Qaida terrorists and their affiliates. He reiterated that they are lawful and that appropriate members of Congress, both Republican and Democrat, have been briefed on the surveillance activities.

"Americans expect their government to do everything in its power under our laws and Constitution to protect them and their civil liberties," Bush said. "That is exactly what we are doing. And so far, we have been successful in preventing another attack on our soil."

The NSA was using the data to analyze calling patterns in order to detect and track suspected terrorist activity, according to information the White House provided to Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo. "Telephone customers' names, addresses and other personal information have not been handed over to NSA as part of this program," Allard said.

Two New Jersey public interest lawyers, however, sued Verizon Communications Inc. on Friday for $5 billion, claiming the phone carrier violated privacy laws by turning over customers' records.

"This is the largest and most vast intrusion of civil liberties we've ever seen in the United States," attorney Bruce Afran said.