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Senate Committee subpoenas White House over wiretap docs

Snip from NYT item by James Risen:

The Senate Judiciary Committee issued a series of subpoenas to the White House, Vice President Cheney’s office, and the Justice Department today related to the National Security Agency’s warrantless wiretapping program, setting the stage for a major legal showdown between Congress and the Bush Administration.

Senator Patrick Leahy, the Vermont Democrat who is chairman of the committee, said the subpoenas seek documents that could shed light on the legal basis used by the administration to justify the wiretapping program. In addition, the panel is seeking materials on the way the program operated, including the relationship between the agency and several unidentified telecommunications companies that aided the eavesdropping program

Link.

Update: A wise information rights lawyer who is well-known but prefers to remain anonymous here says,

There are 4 subpoenas, all linked to the bottom of this page.

Interesting stuff being asked for, including:

D. All documents from September 11, 2001 to the present that reflect, discuss, or
describe agreements or understandings between the White House, the
Department of Justice, the National Security Agency, or any other entity of
the Executive Branch and telecommunications companies, internet service
providers, equipment manufacturers, or data processors regarding criminal or
civil liability for assisting with or participating in the warrantless electronic
surveillance program;

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