LEGI-SLATE News Service staff
Updated April 24, 1998

Sen. John Ashcroft (R-Mo.) is opposed to forcing citizens to provide the government with immediate access to their encrypted communications. As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Federalism and Property Rights, Ashcroft has been outspoken that the nation's encryption policies must represent a balance between law enforcement needs and the constitutional right to privacy.

Ashcroft also is working with Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on a new encryption bill.

Before Ashcroft's 1994 election to Congress, he spent two terms as Missouri's governor, winning elections in 1984 and 1988. Lately, Ashcroft has been laying the groundwork for a possible presidential bid in 2000. He is a former Missouri state auditor and former state attorney general.

Ashcroft also sings baritone in a quartet with fellow House Republicans Trent Lott (Miss.), Larry Craig (Idaho) and James Jeffords (Vt.).

See Senator Ashcroft's Congressional Guide profile and send him e-mail.