US President George W. Bush denied today his government was "trolling through" Americans' personal lives, despite a report that a domestic spy agency was collecting phone records of tens of millions of citizens
Defending his administration's espionage program, Bush said intelligence activities he had authorised were lawful and the government was not eavesdropping on domestic phone calls without court approval.
However, Democrats and Republicans alike demanded an explanation after the USA Todaynewspaper reported the National Security Agency was secretly amassing phone records from phone companies to analyse calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist plots.
"The privacy of ordinary Americans is fiercely protected in all our activities," Bush told reporters at a hastily called session aimed at damage control. "We're not mining or trolling through the personal lives of millions of innocent Americans."
Some Democratic senators suggested, however, the disclosure could complicate confirmation of Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden, who was nominated by Bush on Monday as director of the CIA.
USA Today said Hayden, who headed the NSA from 1999 to 2005, would have overseen the call-tracking program.
The White House said Hayden's nomination was going "full steam ahead." Hayden proceeded with meetings with individual senators who will be considering his nomination.
Despite that, the controversy could compound Bush's political problems as he struggles to lift public approval ratings that have fallen to new lows, putting his Republican party's control of Congress at risk in November's elections.