Apparently, what the Center for Public Integrity (? was that the
organization?) had its hands on was far more than just a red herring or
unattributed Justice Dept. working sheet.  Below, I am appending part of an
AP dispatch in which members of Congress lambasted Ashcroft for telling his
aide to mislead Congress on the nature of this proposed legislation:

SNIP SNIP SNIP....

Leahy, Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and other Democrats say they've been
asking Justice officials for months for their ideas on expanding the
anti-terrorism statutes but have been rebuffed. Leahy said a Justice official
told one of his staffers that no new law was being crafted, less than a week
before what appeared to be a leaked copy of a new draft anti-terrorism
proposal was posted on the Internet by The Center for Public Integrity.

''Somebody who reports directly to you lied to her and this is not a good
thing,'' Leahy said. ''I think it shows a secretive process in developing
this.''

Ashcroft said no final proposal for an anti-terrorism expansion has been
developed, although ''we are constantly thinking of things that ought to be
considered.''

''I'm keenly aware that the administration cannot pass legislation,''
Ashcroft said. ''Only members of Congress can pass legislation. It would be
height of absurdity for me to have a secret matter I hope to make a law
without telling Congress.''

Feingold told Ashcroft that even though what was leaked might be a draft
copy, ''it is keenly important to consult with Congress.''

But Ashcroft said he wouldn't defend something that he wasn't ready to submit
to Congress.

''I don't believe that I should start to consult and defend things which I
believe are indefensible or are not part of something I would seek to
propose,'' he said. ''Until I have something I think is appropriate, I don't
know that I should engage in some sort of discussion.''

 AP-NY-03-04-03 1317EST