Bush Campaigns for Patriot Act Renewal

[nonconformist]

TYSONS CORNER, Va. -
President Bush campaigned anew Friday against any weakening of the Patriot Act, saying Congress must renew the counterterrorism law on behalf of those "on the front lines" of the fight to avert new attacks.

"One of the most important tools to combat terror is the Patriot Act," Bush said in remarks at the National Counterterrorism Center outside Washington. "The Patriot Act has helped save American lives and it has protected American liberties. For the sake of our national security, the United States Congress needs to renew all the provisions of the Patriot Act and, this time, Congress needs to make those provisions permanent."

<snip>

The Patriot Act, Congress' nearly immediate reaction to the attacks, allowed expanded surveillance of terror suspects, increased use of material witness warrants to hold suspects incommunicado and permitted secret proceedings in immigration cases.

Now, more than a dozen provisions are set to expire later this year. Congress has begun working on renewing them amid fresh criticism — from members of both parties — that the law undermines basic freedoms.

Bush also pressed Congress to renew the expiring provisions on Thursday in Ohio.

"It doesn't make any sense to me, that if something is working, why should it expire," Bush said Friday.

<snip>

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050610/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_counterterrorism_center

*vomit*

[Occulus]

1. "President Bush campaigned anew Friday"

Did he ever stop?

[Sgt. Baker]

3. What gets me

is that he touts the patriot act to no end and how it will ensure homeland security but at the same time all our money is going overseas and our borders are as porous as ever. I don't think the admin really cares about homeland security and may actually be waiting for another attack within the US so they can get another boost of support for their freedom stomping policies.

[amandabeech]

11. Once a cheerleader, always a cheerleader,

and not much else.

Being President is a very hard job when you can't focus on anything for more than 15 minutes. That's why * only takes care of the ceremonial aspects of the job.

[seemslikeadream]

2. Video of Rep. Sensenbrenner shutting down committee hearing

This morning Rep. Sensenbrenner, the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee was leading a committee hearing looking into the renewal of Patriot Act.

Mr. Sensenbrenner decided that he didn't like the tone of the meeting and simply got up and left but not before he criticized the witnesses who came and gave their testimony to the committee.

After he left the microphones were switched on and off while the Democratic members of the committee continued to discuss the renewal of the Patriot Act.


http://www.dembloggers.com/

[AtTheEndOfTheDay]

4. Watching ABC News yesterday

I believe ABC anyway, they reported 69% support of renewing the Patriot Act. I was surprised, well maybe not really, but if that's true it's depressing.

[nonconformist]

6. Too many people wrongly think that if you're not doing anything "wrong"

then it's not a big deal. What they don't realize is that you don't HAVE TO BE DOING ANYTHING WRONG to be affected by this.

[atreides1]

8. CNN had a different result

But a CNN poll yesterday showed a higher majority against renewing it.

[Rainscents]

10. ABC is own by corporate... They always fix the numbers! My opinion...

[nonconformist]

5. "it has protected American liberties"

:wtf:

The liberty of the government to do whatever the hell they want - probable cause, warrants and judicial process be damned? Because he sure as shit can't mean the liberties of the American people.

[TahitiNut]

15. Liberty is "protected" by locking it up and posting guards.

Privacy is "protected" by continuous and pervasive surveillance and a Carte Blanche to corporations collecting all manner of personal data -- then opening those records to government and other corporations, but prohibiting individual access. It's beyond Orwellian.

[atreides1]

7. Just Like Hitler

Asking for the "Enabling Act"!!!!

[dubyaD40web]

9. From the Waco Tribune:

Editorial: KGB Jr.?

http://www.wacotrib.com/opin/content/news/opinion/stories/2005/06/10/20050610waceditorial0610.html

[Sequoia]

12. Shuddup moron.

Bla, bla, bla, bla, bla.

[Bassic]

13. As a Canadian

I have trouble understanding wht in Hell the Republican party keeps going along with this sort of crap. Aren't they supposed to be opposed to big governement involvement in everyday affairs? It seems to me as though Bush is the new face of Big Brother, yet his party didn't, and still doesen't, seem to mind the abrupt change in ideology.

Or maybe I'm just not jaded enough to that ideology is pretty much a concept that is dead and buried.

[genieroze]

14. In Ohio, Bush urges making the Patriot Act permanent

9 hours ago

In Ohio, Bush urges making the Patriot Act permanent
President doesn't mention provision to give FBI broad subpoena power
By Gail Gibson
Sun National Staff
Originally published June 10, 2005
President Bush pressed Congress yesterday to make permanent the broad police powers created four years ago under the USA Patriot Act, saying it had "accomplished exactly what it was designed to do: It has protected American liberty and saved American lives."

Left unmentioned in the president's speech to a group of cadets at an Ohio police academy was a little-discussed plan to expand the sweeping counterterrorism legislation to give FBI agents unprecedented access to a variety of personal records without having to get a judge's approval.

The plan has emerged quietly in recent weeks and touched off fierce opposition from civil liberties activists, who had hoped to scale back some of the far-reaching surveillance tools, passed as a swift response to the Sept. 11 attacks, when they came up for renewal this year.

"It's an enormous power grab by the administration," Lisa Graves, senior counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union's legislative strategy division, said yesterday.




you need to register
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/bal-te.patriot10jun10,1,540726.story?coll=bal-nationworld-headlines

[killbotfactory]

16. I hope he is as successful with this as he is with social security reform

:rofl:

[TerdlowSmedley]

17. Call me cynical but --

I find it more than just a little suspicious, based on our collective experience of having the security threat elevated every time the Bush White House has embarrassing questions to answer about the scandal du jour, that there's suddenly been another "Al Qaeda sleeper cell" arrest so conveniently concurrent with Bush's new campaign to save every last unConstitutional bit of the Patriot Act.