Dem-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee extends PATRIOT Act provisions

[kpete]

Source: Raw Story

Dem-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee extends PATRIOT Act provisions

By Raw Story
Thursday, October 8th, 2009 -- 10:21 pm

Key US lawmakers passed legislation Thursday extending three key provisions of the PATRIOT Act, the sweeping intelligence bill enacted after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Backing a White House request, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the measure 11 votes to 8 to extend until 2013 three clauses that would have expired by 31 December. The bill now heads to the full Senate for a vote.

The provisions include the "roving wiretap" clause, used to monitor mobile communications of individuals using multiple telephone lines, and the "lone-wolf" provision, which enables spying on individuals suspected of terrorist activity but with no obvious connection to extremist groups.

Lawmakers also extended the life of controversial section 215, known as the "library records provision" that allows government agencies to access individual's library history.

Read more: http://rawstory.com/2009/10/dem-controlled-senate-judic... /

[Zoeisright]

1. Oh for Pete's sake.

This is getting ridiculous.

[proud patriot]

2. grr

[laconicsax]

3. "Backing a White House request..."

Change you can believe in!

[BradXXX]

14. took the words out of my mouth n/t

[niyad]

4. SSDD

[frylock]

5. shocking

[Le Taz Hot]

6. Well, as long as I didn't "waste" my vote

voting the for a third-party candidate and voted for someone with a "D" next to his name, that's what's important.

[No Elephants]

22. I've made a similar argument. I've repented. Technically, though, you

don't really waste your vote. If a Democrat votes third party or stays home, it helps the Republican, and vice versa. Voting or not voting always has an impact. Just not the impact you might prefer.

When, in 2000, Nader said there was no difference between the 2 parties anymore, I saw a huge difference between Bush and Gore. Today, I see less and less difference between the parties. I guess once Bush pried open Pandora's box, we were forever screwn. Only saints voluntarily give up power.

[tomm2thumbs]

7. well, if they are going to continue it, please use it to go after these right wing fanatics at least

gawd, maybe in some crazy, other-world mirror universe sort of way, Bush did a favor to Obama by accidentally providing tools to catch these 'overthrow the government' types who are set on killing him. Seriously. If this is what they are going to use it for, I give them 100% support through 2013 because turning their own right wing weapons right back on themselves is poetic justice.

[Stumbler]

9. I hope your optimism is rightly placed

God knows that man needs as much help protecting himself and his family as any US president had. It's still a shame we'd allow these violations of the Constitution to continue.

[tomm2thumbs]

12. me hope so too

[natrat]

13. it is to protect the politicians and ultra rich when this country rolls over

when millions are starving and riots begin anyone who tries organized resistance will be cut down as "terrorists"

[BobTheSubgenius]

8. Fuck.

Just....fuck.

[Zhade]

10. "Change"

What a liar he turned out to be.

[harmonicon]

15. Not a liar

Just that the people who didn't look for specifics and thought "change" meant change they wanted were complete suckers. Did he ever say that he wanted to stop this? I honestly don't remember. Even if he did, Congress will do what Congress wants to do - in areas where the president is trying to make positive change they've demonstrated that they don't give a crap.

[Nihil]

20. Exactly ...

... he changed the name of the man at the top didn't he?

He changed the numbers of 'D's & 'R's in the various buildings didn't he?

What? You wanted more?

There's just no pleasing some people

[harmonicon]

21. whatever

What the hell did you think you were getting when you voted? If you wanted Kucinich, he wasn't on the ballot. I knew exactly what I was voting for and I've got what I expected.

No point in complaining that your apple isn't an orange.

[No Elephants]

23. Did he ever say he wanted to continue this? He sure implied otherwise, though he may not

have specified one way or the other.

[harmonicon]

24. well, there you go

Some people will just hear what they want to hear. That's how persuasive speaking works.

[Solly Mack]

11. K&R

[Selatius]

16. Let's keep pissing on the Bill of Rights and the US Constitution some more!

Yeah, get the piece of paper out here now! I'll take a shit on it right now! This is change we fucking believe in! Team America, Fuck Yeah!

[ixion]

18. sad, isn't it?

some freakin' change.

[joeycola]

26. There are some brave Dems though.........

...........But their Democratic counterparts have decried the fact that the provisions still do not in their view adequately respect the privacy of ordinary Americans.

Democratic Senator Russ Feingold said he feared handing a "blank check" to law enforcement agencies and criticized the Democrat-controlled committee for not passing safeguards that even Republicans supported during the Bush administration.

"Among the most significant problems is the failure to include an improved standard for Section 215 orders, even though a Republican controlled Judiciary Committee unanimously supported including the same standard in 2005," he said in a media advisory.

"But what was most upsetting was the apparent willingness of too many members to defer completely to behind the scenes complaints from the FBI and the Justice Department, even though the administration has yet to take a public position on any of the improvements that I and other senators have proposed. ... I am left scratching my head trying to understand how a committee controlled by a wide Democratic margin could support the bill it approved today, I will continue to work with my colleagues to try to make improvements to this bill."

Michael Macleod-Ball, acting director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Washington legislative office said the rights group was "disappointed" that further moves were not made to protect civil liberties.

[TankLV]

17. How disgusting - "Change" we can believe in..yeah right...

so tell us why democrats are DIFFERENT than the repukes?!!!

[joeycola]

25. "Backing a White House request" There is NO difference when

it comes to these issues.

[Piewhacket]

19. Chickenshit. FIRE the FBI and DiFi. Leahy, you are officially on probation.