More fundamental, Mr. Bush’s powers do not supersede laws passed by Congress or the Constitution’s protections against unreasonable searches and seizures .

The ensuing debate did turn up an Internet-age problem with FISA: It requires a warrant to eavesdrop on foreign communications that go through American computers. There was an easy fix, but when Congress made it last year, the White House muscled in amendments that seriously diluted the courts’ ability to restrain the government from spying on its own citizens.

That law expires on Aug. 3, and Mr. Bush is demanding even more power to spy. He also wants immunity for the telecommunications companies that provided the government with Americans’ private data without a warrant after Sept. 11.

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Lawsuits against those companies are the best hope of finding out the extent of Mr. Bush’s lawless spying. But Democratic leaders in Congress are reported to have agreed to a phony compromise drafted by Senator Christopher Bond, the Republican vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee.

Under the so-called compromise, the question of immunity would be decided by a federal district court — a concession by Mr. Bond, who originally wanted the FISA court, which meets in secret and is unsuited to the task, to decide. What is unacceptable, though, is that the district court would be instructed to decide based solely on whether the Bush administration certifies that the companies were told the spying was legal. If the aim is to allow a court hearing on the president’s spying, the lawsuits should be allowed to proceed — and the courts should be able to resolve them the way they resolve every other case. Republicans, who complain about judges making laws from the bench, should not be making judicial decisions from Capitol Hill.

This week, House and Senate leaders were trying to allay the concerns of some lawmakers that approving the immunity would be tantamount to retroactively declaring the spying operation to have been legal. Those lawmakers are right. Granting the corporations immunity would send that exact message.

The new bill has other problems. It gives the government too much leeway to acquire communications in the United States without individual warrants or even a showing of probable cause. It greatly reduces judicial review, and it would remain in force for six years, which is too long.

If Congress cannot pass a clean bill that fixes the one real problem with FISA, it should simply extend the temporary authorization. At a minimum, the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi , and the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid , should oppose FISA expansion and pledge to revisit it next year. If any significant changes are going to be made, they should be made under the next president.

There are clear differences between the candidates. Senator John McCain , who is sounding more like Mr. Bush every day, believes the president has the power to eavesdrop on Americans without a warrant.

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