A package of intelligence reforms from President Barack Obama, which is expected to be released in advance of the State of the Union address later this month, “will probably put a public advocate for the first time in the secret court that approves surveillance practices and remove a controversial telephone records database from direct government control,” Los Angeles Times reports. However, the report states, Obama’s advisors are skeptical about a proposal that would require a federal judge to approve national security letters, with one official noting, “There is concern that this proposal makes it more cumbersome to investigate a terrorist than it does a criminal.” The report comes on the heels of December’s announcement of 46 recommended reforms from the NSA review panel.
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