Lawmakers Want Court Approval Before DOJ Spies on Journalists

Which might marginally improve the situation

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers unveiled a bill on Wednesday that would force the Department of Justice (DOJ) to get a federal court's approval before seizing records from journalists.

The move comes in response to growing concerns from both parties on Capitol Hill that the DOJ may have violated the First Amendment rights of Associated Press and Fox News employees by seizing their telephone and email records in a pair of separate investigations into national security leaks.

"This was nothing short of, in my opinion, a massive intimidation fishing expedition," said Rep. Ted Poe (Texas), the lead Republican backer of the measure.