A Weekly e-Newsletter from
Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA)

February 15, 2008

Dear Friends,

This week the Senate passed legislation by a vote of 68 to 29 to update the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, also known as FISA, and bring the law up to date with current communication technologies.  The bipartisan legislation makes needed changes to FISA so the government’s counter-terrorism intelligence-gathering can continue uninterrupted. It reiterates that FISA constitutes the exclusive means by which electronic surveillance and surveillance of domestic communications may be conducted.  The bill clarifies that FISA’s requirement of prior court approval does not apply to surveillance that is targeted at a person reasonably believed to be located outside the United States in accordance with the bill’s procedures. The bill’s provision for warrantless authority sunsets on December 31, 2013. The House has passed its own update of FISA and the two chambers must now seek to reconcile the differences between their two bills.

The intelligence gathered through foreign intelligence surveillance saves American lives.  The absence of any catastrophic attacks in America since September 11, 2001, is the product of hard work by Americans in intelligence, law enforcement and the military.

Imperial Sugar Refinery Explosion
This morning, Senator Chambliss and I met with employees and families at the Imperial Sugar Company in Port Wentworth, Ga., that was destroyed late last Thursday after an explosion in one of the company’s three storage silos.  Our first responders were on the scene minutes after the accident, and the nurses and physicians at the Joseph M. Still Burn Unit in Augusta have been hard at work helping those affected directly by the explosion.  I appreciate the responsiveness by these teams and I am very thankful for the emergency personnel and the firefighters whose heroic efforts prevented further loss.  My wife, Dianne, and I are praying for the victims and their families. 

It is imperative that the federal government begins to work quickly to determine why this accident happened so we can avoid another tragedy.  As the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety, I have been receiving direct reports from the Occupational Safety and Hazard Administration on the accident all week.  Senator Chambliss, along with Senators Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., and Patty Murray, D-Wash., and I sent a letter to the U.S. Secretary of Labor and the interim executive of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, urging them to begin a comprehensive investigation of the explosion.  To view the text of the letter, click here. 

At the visit, we pledged our complete support and that of the U.S. government in every way possible on a thorough, precise investigation and then reconstruction of this valuable facility in the greater Chatham County community. 

Legislation to End Reckless Spending
This week, Senator Chambliss and I joined with Senator Domenici, R.-N.M., in introducing bipartisan legislation to end reckless spending and reform the federal budget process by converting it to a two-year cycle, with one year for appropriating federal dollars and the other year devoted to oversight of federal programs.  Specifically, the Biennial Budgeting and Appropriations Act, S.2627, would require the president to submit a two-year budget at the beginning of the first session of a Congress. Members of Congress would then need to adopt a two-year budget resolution, a reconciliation bill if necessary and two-year appropriations bills during that first session. The legislation ensures the enactment of two-year appropriations bills by providing a new majority point of order against consideration of an appropriations bill that fails to cover two years.  The second session of a Congress would then be devoted to the consideration of authorization bills and oversight of federal programs. Isakson and Chambliss believe the enhanced oversight will result in more accountability of government programs.

One of the problems we have in Congress with deficit spending is spending money on projects that shouldn’t be funded with tax dollars and programs that have outlasted their usefulness. So this is first and foremost about changing our budget process and setting priorities for spending.  Also, under this legislation, if you appropriated during odd-numbered years and did oversight during even-numbered years, wouldn’t it be refreshing to have candidates seeking federal office in even-numbered years talking about the oversight of federal programs instead of how they want to spend more of the taxpayers’ dollars. Congress must become better stewards of the taxpayers’ money, and this legislation is a good step in that direction.

Resolution Passed Honoring Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
On Wednesday, the Senate passed a resolution Senator Chambliss and I introduced recognizing February 20, 2008, as the 100th anniversary of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Ga.  I congratulate Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College on its success and developing thousands of young men and women into leaders of the agriculture industry in Georgia over the past 100 years.  It is both an honor and privilege for me to commend the student body, the faculty and the founders on behalf of the state of Georgia and the United States Senate.

What’s on Tap for Next Week?

The Senate will take its annual Presidents Day recess for work in the state.  I look forward to traveling around Northeast and Southwest Georgia to hear directly from constituents there about their needs and concerns.

Sincerely,
Johnny Isakson