Paul Kiel October 9, 2007, 4:03 PM

From the AP:

A top Democratic leader opened the door Tuesday to granting U.S. telecommunications companies retroactive legal immunity for helping the government conduct electronic surveillance without court orders, but said the Bush administration must first detail what those companies did.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said providing the immunity will likely be the price of getting President Bush to sign into law new legislation extending the government’s surveillance authority. About 40 pending lawsuits name telecommunications companies for alleged violations of wiretapping laws. Democrats introduced a draft version of the new law Tuesday _ without the immunity language.

“We have not received documentation as to what in fact was done, for which we’ve been asked to give immunity,” Hoyer said.

Last time, this was not a deal the administration was willing to make.

Surveillance