Editorial: President oversteps his bounds

Tuesday, July 25, 2006 | 7:46 a.m.

I t made for splashy headlines when it was revealed that the National Security Agency had launched a domestic eavesdropping program.

But it was lesser news when the Justice Department closed an ethics investigation of the program before it began because its investigators could not obtain necessary security clearances. And much of the media downplayed Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' acknowledgement last week during a congressional hearing that it was Bush himself who personally ordered that the clearances be denied.

Gonzales' disclosure surprised Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., who questioned Gonzales at the hearing. Gonzales told him that Bush got directly involved "because this is such an important program."

A few lawmakers were taken aback.

"The president's latest action shows that he is willing to be personally involved in the cover-up of suspected illegal activity," Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., said in a New York Times story.

It is not unusual for federal agencies to investigate White House activities. It is far rarer - and highly troubling - that a president would personally torpedo an investigation.

Unnamed White House officials told the Times that they wanted to limit the number of people digging into the surveillance program to protect its secrecy.

We suspect the real reason has more to do with Bush covering the tracks of a program that may illegally trample citizen rights. The Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility routinely investigates issues under strict security clearance rules, and the unit should be allowed to do its job.