Offering frequent news and analysis from the majestic Evergreen State and beyond, The Cascadia Advocate is the Northwest Progressive Institute's unconventional perspective on world, national, and local politics.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

End the assault on our rights: Tell Congress to vote NO on "Patriot" Act renewal

The Electronic Frontier Foundation reports:
The House of Representatives is expected to vote tomorrow on a bill to renew the USA "PATRIOT" Act. A Senate vote is expected before the week it out. Now is the time to call your senator and representatives and say "No!" to PATRIOT renewal.

The final conference process for PATRIOT reauthorization has gone very badly for those attempting to reform the bill. Growing concerns in the House, and key compromises agreed in the Senate have all been ignored. Indeed, the draft bill obtained by EFF actually makes some PATRIOT powers worse:

  • "National Security Letters", which the Washington Post reveals have been used to spy on tens of thousands of ordinary Americans, have been strengthened. New criminal penalties have been added for NSL recipients who try to speak about their experience.
  • The draft bill jettisons the four-year time limits on several PATRIOT powers,replacing them with longer, seven-year "sunset" clauses. All other PATRIOT powers that were set to expire this year will be renewed without any time limit.
  • Some politicians, confident that no one would dare vote against PATRIOT, have added their own irrelevant amendments: piggybacking other unpopular reforms onto this terrible bill.
This bill flouts the growing concern in Congress with the documented abuses of the prior version of the Patriot Act and the flawed process of PATRIOT reauthorization. They're growing restless on Capitol Hill: one more call could be enough to start a rebellion in both Houses.

Time is short: sources say the PATRIOT vote will be rushed through in the next few days. Please call your representative and senators now. Ask them vote "no" on the PATRIOT reauthorization act.
Lisa Graves, ACLU Senior Counsel for Legislative Strategy, had this to say about the new "Patriot" Act:
"The Patriot Act was bad in 2001, and despite bipartisan calls for reform, it's still bad in 2005. Instead of addressing the real concerns that millions of Americans have about the Patriot Act, the Republican majority in Congress buckled to White House pressure, stripping the bill of modest yet meaningful reforms. Congress must reject this bill.

"Don't be fooled by some lawmakers spinning this bill as Patriot Act reform. It’s anything but. Lawmakers have let the administration take us from bad to worse. There's a reason why groups like the Chamber of Commerce, American Conservative Union and American Library Association have all come together for Patriot Act reform. The question is: Why haven’t lawmakers listened?"
Follow this link to take action. The ACLU has set up a special website where you can learn more about what the administration is trying to squeeze through Congress and how you can easily get in touch with your representative and senators.

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