Gonzales says Congress authorised spying

PRESIDENT Bush, brushing aside bipartisan criticism in Congress, said yesterday he approved spying on suspected terrorists without court orders because it was “a necessary part of my job to protect” Americans from attack.

The president said he would continue the programme "for so long as the nation faces the continuing threat of an enemy that wants to kill American citizens", and added it included safeguards to protect civil liberties.

Bush bristled at a year-end news conference when asked whether there are any limits on presidential power in wartime.