Bush calls for new police powers for war on terror
( 2001-09-26 10:57 ) (7 )

US President George W Bush on Tuesday urged lawmakers to approve a controversial package of new law-enforcement powers, saying investigators fighting the war on terrorism need a beefed-up arsenal.

"We're facing a different kind of war than our country is used to," he said in a speech thanking FBI agents for their efforts to track down the authors of September 11 terror strikes on New York and Washington.

"We're at war, a war we're going to win. And in order to win the war, we must make sure that the law enforcement men and women have got the tools necessary, within the Constitution, to defeat the enemy," he said.

"Our Congress needs to work with us," said Bush.

The president has proposed new initiatives enhancing authorities' ability to trace and listen to phone calls as well as detain non-US citizens suspected of terrorism.

"That seems to make sense, that if a suspected terrorist is detained and our nation has decided to deport the person, then they ought to be held in custody until the action actually takes place," he told the crowd.

"The only alternative is to let suspected terrorists loose in our country. I don't think anybody wants to do that."

Bush promised the new rules would not fall afoul of constitutionally-protected civil liberties.

"They are responsible requests. They are constitutional requests. Ours is a land that values the constitutional rights of every citizen and we will honor those rights, of course," he said.