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Sen. Dianne Feinstein is not to be trifled with. As the Democratic chairman of the Senate Committee on Intelligence, the senior senator from California has staunchly defended America鈥檚 intelligence community even as the world has railed against its mass surveillance of phone records. So when she takes to the Senate floor to say that the CIA 鈥渕ay well have violated鈥� the Constitution in interfering with her committee鈥檚 investigation of the agency, that鈥檚 a serious allegation.

It may also signal more muscular senatorial oversight of America鈥檚 spymasters, a function that has weakened over the decades since the 1975 Church Committee 鈥� led by the late Sen. Frank Church of Idaho 鈥� investigated the country鈥檚 intelligence agencies in the wake of Watergate and the Vietnam War.

鈥淎fter several decades of erosion of legislative oversight power and authority, a powerful committee chair is saying 鈥楾hat鈥檚 enough,鈥� 鈥� says Richard Baker, co-author of the new book, 鈥淭he American Senate: An Insider鈥檚 History.鈥� The oversight of US intelligence agencies is a crucial congressional function, and this faceoff is 鈥渆xtremely weighty,鈥� says the Senate historian emeritus.

Senator Feinstein, he says, 鈥渆njoys a huge amount of respect and is very thoughtful鈥�. If somebody鈥檚 going to draw the line, she鈥檚 the one to do it.鈥�

She certainly did that on Tuesday. In an unusual and detailed speech, she parted the curtains on a committee investigation of the CIA鈥檚 detention and interrogation program begun in 2002 鈥� under President George W. Bush 鈥� and which is now defunct.

During the course of the committee鈥檚 investigation, which was conducted on separate computers for Senate staff at a secure location in northern Virginia, the CIA multiple times denied committee staff access to documents that the agency had previously provided, according to Feinstein. It also conducted a search of committee computers at the facility, she says. The matter has since been referred to the Justice Department for investigation.

Feinstein spoke out Tuesday to 鈥渟et the record straight鈥� in the face of various articles in the media about the investigation. She said, for instance, that her staff鈥檚 removal of printouts of a CIA internal review of the program, called 鈥渢he Panetta review,鈥� was perfectly legal and done according to security protocol. Although she acknowledged that taking a copy of the review violated an agreement with the CIA not to remove anything without prior clearance.

The agency鈥檚 interference with the committee鈥檚 work 鈥渕ay well have violated the separation-of-powers principles embodied in the United States Constitution,鈥� she said, and she accused the CIA of 鈥渋ntimidating鈥� staff. CIA Director John Brennan on Tuesday denied the agency was trying to stop the committee鈥檚 work or that it had hacked into the committee鈥檚 computers.

Senate expert Baker points to decades of mistrust between the CIA and Senate oversight. 鈥淭he CIA and the Senate investigating committees have had a rather rocky relationship ever since the days of the Church Committee in 1975,鈥� he explained.

Perhaps with the exception of the Iran-Contra investigation during the Reagan presidency, the Senate has shied away from the massive investigations that characterized the Church era, according to Baker. They were too time consuming, required large staffs, and took place in highly partisan conditions.

Instead, senators have turned to outside commissions, such as the bipartisan 9/11 Commission that looked at how the US failed to connect the dots that led to the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington in 2001.

It鈥檚 not clear how this complaint will turn out, but it would help strengthen Feinstein鈥檚 case if she had bipartisan backing. Senators in her own party are standing behind her. Two of the Senate鈥檚 Republican hawks, John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, also spoke out.

"If true, this is Richard Nixon stuff," Senator Graham said, suggesting those responsible should be fired, according to the Los Angeles Times. Senator McCain said there may be a need for an independent investigation. If Feinstein鈥檚 allegation鈥檚 stand up, there must be 鈥渞epercussions,鈥� he said.

But several other Republicans were reserving judgment, including the top Republican on the Senate Committee on Intelligence, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia. 鈥淭here鈥檚 disagreement as to what the actual facts are,鈥� he said, even as CIA Director Brennan urged senators to 鈥渢ake their time to make sure that they don鈥檛 overstate what they claim.鈥�

In closing, Feinstein called this a 鈥渄efining moment鈥� for the committee鈥檚 oversight role. 鈥淗ow this will be resolved will show whether the Intelligence Committee can be effective in monitoring and investigating our nation鈥檚 intelligence activities, or whether our work can be thwarted by those we oversee.鈥�

That鈥檚 a strong statement from the California senator, who, according to McCain, he wouldn鈥檛 try to 鈥渟econd guess.鈥�