On January 19, 2006, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) released a white paper laying out a legal basis for the domestic surveillance program run by the National Security Agency (NSA). The paper argued that the NSA activities were supported by the president's constitutional authority as Commander in Chief and congressional authorization for the war on al Qaeda under the 2001 Authorization to Use Military Force. Additionally, it argued that the wiretaps "fall within a well-established exception to the warrant requirement and [satisfy] the Fourth Amendment's fundamental requirement of reasonableness."



Learn more about President George W. Bush's domestic surveillance program from the JURIST news archive.