Issues
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Patriot Act Our office has heard from constituents voicing various concerns with the USA PATRIOT Act. As you may know, I supported the PATRIOT Act, which the House overwhelmingly approved by a vote of 357 to 66. The Senate subsequently passed an identical bill by a vote of 98 to 1, and it was signed into law by President Bush on October 26, 2001. Several provisions of the PATRIOT Act are scheduled to sunset in FY09 unless they are extended by Congress. While I am a staunch supporter of the rights granted to all Americans under the Constitution, unfortunately I am also aware that the enemy we are now facing knowingly and mockingly abuses these sacred rights to bring harm to innocent, law-abiding citizens. In my opinion, those who perpetrate acts of war against us, on our soil, do not and should not be granted a platform from which to ridicule our inalienable rights and promote terrorism. That said, I believe reasonable steps may be taken to ensure our national security without unduly infringing on our civil liberties. The purpose of the PATRIOT Act is to grant law enforcement and homeland security officials with the necessary tools to identify and apprehend terrorists. All requests for information must be approved by a federal judge or magistrate and be linked to international terrorism or espionage. Nothing in this law undermines our constitutional protections, particularly the Fourth Amendment prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures or the First Amendment. |