Senate Rejects Patriot Act Extension
Saturday, December 17, 2005
(SNN Washington) Yesterday, the Senate blocked passage of a new Patriot Act to combat terrorism at home. This proves that the Senate would rather you have a 0.000001% of exploding then completely destroy your civil liberties.
The decision was eventually made by filibuster.
The decision was eventually made by filibuster. The Senate voted 52 to 47 to advance the vote, falling eight votes short of the 60 needed to end filibuster.
In defending his stance, John Sununu, a New Hampshire Republican, quoted Benjamin Franklin: "Those that would give up essential liberty in pursuit of a little temporary security deserve neither liberty nor security." However, many members of the Senate claimed that Americans really did not deserve liberty or security.
The White House has been using the National Security Agency to spy on Americans
Some senators were perhaps swayed by recent news that the White House has been using the National Security Agency to spy on Americans with no judicial overview, and their attempt to keep these wiretaps secret. This has shocked and dismayed several high-level Republicans such as Senator Arlen Specter, who reportedly said "seriously WTF".
The practical implications of the expiration of the original law are that law enforcement agencies can continue to spy on groups such as al-Qaida, Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad and the Zarqawi group in Iraq. However, they will have to stop spying on their neighbors, hot sorority girls, people who talk dirty on the phone and people who have sex in their hot tub. It still remains unclear if one forced to continue to spy on hot sorority girls suspected of being a part of al-Qaida, Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad or the Zarqawi group in Iraq.
