President Barack Obama met with a group of “hand-picked” lawmakers on Thursday to discuss potential reform to the National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance programs. The meeting included proponents of existing programs—such as Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA)—and vocal critics, including Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI), and according to the National Journal, several of the lawmakers left the meeting unconvinced the president was going to reform the programs enough. House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) said, “it’s increasingly clear that we need to take legislative action to reform” the agency’s intelligence gathering. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) said, “The debate is clearly fluid” and that the president “is wrestling with these issues.” The Wall Street Journal reports Obama will extend privacy protections to noncitizens and will restructure the phone data program. Phone carriers could foot a bill of up to $60 million per year if they’re required to retain data for intelligence agencies. The NSA fallout is also prompting several states into action.
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