STEVE INSKEEP, host: Now in this country, former Secretary of State Colin Powell says he      understands why President Bush authorized an eavesdropping program after      the September 11 attacks.  Powell said it's harder to understand why the      president did not follow a law on surveillance.  The president      acknowledges that he approved spying on people in the US suspected of      ties to terrorism.  His former secretary of State spoke to ABC over the      weekend.</s>General COLIN POWELL (Former Secretary of State): In the aftermath of      9/11, the American people had one concern and that was, `Protect us.' And      so I see absolutely nothing wrong with the president authorizing these      kinds of action and it's Congress who will have to make a judgment as to      whether or not they think the president was using the law correctly or      not.</s>Unidentified Man: What do you think?</s>General COLIN POWELL (Former Secretary of State): And it's going to be a great debate.  My own judgment is      that it didn't seem to me anyway that it would have been that hard to go      get the warrants.  And even in the case of an emergency, you go and do      it.  The law provides for that.  And then three days later you let the      court know what you have done and deal with it that way.</s>STEVE INSKEEP, host: Secretary Powell is referring to a law passed by Congress in      the 1970s after a scandal over spying on Americans.  That law permits      surveillance in the US provided the government gets permission from a      secret court.  The president says he has the authority to bypass that      court and his contention will be tested in congressional hearings next      month.</s>STEVE INSKEEP, host: Last week The New York Times offered more details of that program.  The      Times says the government got help from telecommunications companies and      it gained access to streams of data, both domestic and international.</s>STEVE INSKEEP, host: You're listening to MORNING EDITION from NPR News.
In an interview with ABC's This Week, former Secretary of State Colin Powell revealed that he does not object to President Bush authorizing a domestic spying program but that he believes the controversy could have been avoided by obtaining court warrants.