Partisan Debate Could Sink Intelligence Reform ; the Senate Hews to the 9/11 Panel's Ideas, but the House Addresses Law Enforcement and Immigration in Its Bill.

Summary

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Congressional negotiators debating the reorganization of the country's intelligence agencies ended up trading partisan accusations Wednesday, threatening to jeopardize approval of any legislation. The conflict is between the Senate version, which aimed strictly for better coordination among intelligence agencies, and the House version, which also contains immigration and law- enforcement proposals.

Complaints erupted when the conference chairman, Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., proposed to start negotiations based on a compromise drafted solely by House Republicans. This rankled Democratic House and Senate members, who argued that the bipartisan Senate version, which was adopted on a 96-2 vote, was a better basis of discussion than the more divisive House version.

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Partisan Debate Could Sink Intelligence Reform ; the Senate Hews to the 9/11 Panel's Ideas, but the House Addresses Law Enforcement and Immigration in Its Bill.

Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., a top Intelligence Committee member, noted that all senators in the room and all House Democrats voted in favor of the Senate bill or a House amendment that mirrored it. Another top Intelligence Committee...

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