House Republicans Seek to Extend Antiterrorism Law
By CHARLIE SAVAGE
NYT
House Republicans are hoping to push back debate over three expiring provisions of the law that expanded the F.B.I.’s counterterrorism powers after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
On Friday, the House of Representatives scheduled a vote next week on legislation that would extend the provisions of the so-called Patriot Act, without modification, until Dec. 8, instead of letting them expire at the end of this month. The move is designed to give the House Judiciary Committee, now under Republican management, time to hold hearings on the law, according to an aide to the committee’s new chairman, Representative Lamar Smith of Texas.
The expiring provisions allow investigators to get “roving wiretap” court orders for targets who switch phone numbers or providers; to seize “any tangible things” deemed relevant to an investigation, like a business’s customer records; and to get wiretap orders against terrorism suspects who are not connected to any foreign terrorist group or government.
Because Congress will be out the last week of February, the House’s quick action on its bill makes it more likely that the Senate will acquiesce. The Senate’s own efforts to deal with the expiring provisions have gotten bogged down with competing proposals in the Judiciary Committee, and senators will also be out of town next week.
(More here.)
NYT
House Republicans are hoping to push back debate over three expiring provisions of the law that expanded the F.B.I.’s counterterrorism powers after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
On Friday, the House of Representatives scheduled a vote next week on legislation that would extend the provisions of the so-called Patriot Act, without modification, until Dec. 8, instead of letting them expire at the end of this month. The move is designed to give the House Judiciary Committee, now under Republican management, time to hold hearings on the law, according to an aide to the committee’s new chairman, Representative Lamar Smith of Texas.
The expiring provisions allow investigators to get “roving wiretap” court orders for targets who switch phone numbers or providers; to seize “any tangible things” deemed relevant to an investigation, like a business’s customer records; and to get wiretap orders against terrorism suspects who are not connected to any foreign terrorist group or government.
Because Congress will be out the last week of February, the House’s quick action on its bill makes it more likely that the Senate will acquiesce. The Senate’s own efforts to deal with the expiring provisions have gotten bogged down with competing proposals in the Judiciary Committee, and senators will also be out of town next week.
(More here.)
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1 Comments:
Oh goody! Lets extend that shady, overreaching, unconstitutional law...written PRIOR to 9/11...but I'm sure there will be plenty of house democrats that want to join in on the American liberty raping session extension anyway...as if there was actually a "two" party system anyway...LOL!
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