NSA prepares to lobby against anti-surveillance amendment

(http://www.huffingtonpost.com) A little more than a month after secret National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance programs were leaked to the public, one GOP congressman is making headway with his push to defund those initiatives.

Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) took to Twitter on Monday, applauding news that his amendment aimed at gutting the programs behind the seizure of millions of Americans' phone records was ruled in order.

Amash's amendment received bipartisan support from the start, including backing from Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Jared Polis (D-Colo.) upon the bill's introduction in June. From the House Rules Committee's website:

"Ends authority for the blanket collection of records under the Patriot Act. Bars the NSA and other agencies from using Section 215 of the Patriot Act to collect records, including telephone call records, that pertain to persons who are not subject to an investigation under Section 215."

The National Security Agency kicked its lobbying into high gear against the amendment which will get a vote sometime this week.

NSA head Gen. Keith Alexander scheduled a last-minute, members-only briefing in response to the amendment, according to an invitation distributed to members of Congress this morning and forwarded to HuffPost. "In advance of anticipated action on amendments to the DoD Appropriations bill, Ranking Member C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger of the House Intelligence Committee invites your Member to attend a question and answer session with General Keith B. Alexander of the National Security Agency," reads the invitation.

The Amash amendment would put the House on record when it comes to NSA snooping. The language of the measure, which would be attached to the Pentagon's spending bill "Ends authority for the blanket collection of records under the Patriot Act. Bars the NSA and other agencies from using Section 215 of the Patriot Act to collect records, including telephone call records, that pertain to persons who are not subject to an investigation under Section 215."

Those interested in supporting the Amash initiative can visit Demand Progress, which has set up a petition page in anticipation of the amendment being introduced on Wednesday.