Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter cranked up his dispute with the Bush administration over executive power threatening to subpoena documents on the White House's surveillance program.

Approximately six months after the New York Times revealed that the National Security Agency (NSA) has been wiretapping international phone calls of U.S. residents without court orders, Congress is set to consider a bill proposed by Arlen Specter.

The bill calls for the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to determine the constitutionality of the president's electronic surveillance program. It recognizes the importance of protecting our nation by keeping the program secret while protecting civil rights by providing for judicial review to guarantee the program is lawful.

The question of whether this is within the president's power lines or not depends on the court's balancing the national security interests against the Fourth Amendment's prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizures. Is the right to privacy overrided by a percieved threat to the nation's safety?