Washington Post: White House Seeks Renewal of Surveillance Laws

"Obama's approach to electronic surveillance has been closely watched since he shifted positions during the presidential campaign last year, casting a vote to update the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act over the objections of liberals in his party. That law granted telecommunication companies immunity from lawsuits by Americans who argued that their privacy had been violated in an electronic data collection program. "

And they were afraid of McCain continuing Bush's polices.