 Ashcroft defended the program as a necessary component of the ongoing War on Terrorism, but the proposal was eventually abandoned.Ashcroft proposed a draft of the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003, legislation to expand the powers of the U.S. government to fight crime and terrorism, while simultaneously eliminating or curtailing judicial review of these powers for incidents related to domestic terrorism.The bill was leaked and posted to the Internet on February 7, 2003.