1.  What is the role of the U.S. Attorney General (AG)?  What government agency does the AG lead?  (For information on the Attorney General, click here.)

2.  The Senate Judiciary Committee is one of the Senate's original standing committees.  It was first authorized in 1816. The Committee has one of the broadest jurisdictions in the Senate, ranging from criminal justice to antitrust and intellectual property law.  How often does the Judiciary Committee meet? (For the answer, see the Judiciary Committee's website.)

3.  What is the main issue of the current special Judiciary Committee meeting?

4.  Opponents of the President's warrentless surveillance programs say that he should just use the FISA court.  What is FISA?  What reason did Mr. Gonzalez give for saying that FISA is not always sufficient?

5.  What determination did the FISA court make in a 2002 opinion about the constitutionality of FISA and the USA Patriot Act?

6.  Re-read paragraph #2.  Do you agree or disagree with AG Gonzalez?  Explain your answer.