Deadline may force compromise on U.S. surveillance law

By Patricia Zengerle and Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republican leaders insist that spy agencies continue to have access to data on Americans' telephone calls despite a court ruling that the practice is illegal, but aides said on Friday they may have to compromise on proposed reforms of the program before it expires on June 1. Senate aides said the deadline could force supporters and opponents of the bulk data collection program to work out a deal before May ends. Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican Majority Leader, and Richard Burr, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, defended the data collection shortly after a federal appeals court three-judge panel in New York ruled the practice illegal on Thursday. McConnell and Burr vowed to fight efforts to scale back the phone surveillance, a counter-terrorism measure in the USA Patriot Act, known as Section 215.

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