The USA PATRIOT Act which stands for Uniting and Strengthening America by
Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism, was proposed by the
Bush administration’s antiterrorism to congress on September 19, 2001 one week after the
terrorist attacks on the twin towers on 9/11. The Patriot Act was passed by The House of
Representatives on October 2nd, 2001 and was then passed by the Senate on October 4,2001
with both the Democrats and Republicans supporting it. This act passed in the House of
Representatives by a margin of 357 to 66 and passed in the Senate by a margin of 98 to 1 with
only one senator, Russell Feingold, a Democrat from Wisconsin, voted against it saying “ I have
asked for time to speak on the Senate floor about the anti-terrorism bill before us. The
Administration’s proposed bill contained vast new powers for law enforcement, some seemingly
drafted in haste and others that came from the FBI’s wish list that congress has rejected in the
past.”.(Miller,Debra, 2007, The Patriot Act, Detriot:Lucent Books ).According to Geoffrey R.
Stone, a law professor at the University of Chicago, “The Bush administration voiced barely
veiled threats that anyone who questioned the legislation would be deemed unpatriotic and
accused of aiding the terrorists, not surprisingly, the act sailed through Congress with no
hearings, no debate, no deliberation and almost no opposition.”. (Miller,Debra, 2007, The Patriot
Act, Detriot:Lucent Books). The Patriot Act was signed into law by President George W. Bush
on October 26, 2001 forty-five days after the September 11 attacks.
Although the Patriot Act was deemed a good thing for America, many criticized the act
because the government did not need to ...
... middle of paper ...
...dearned
freedom , as a result the people of America panicked because they realized they were
vulnerable and made excuses and controversies to make themselves feel safer, maybe the
government did go a little too far on the liberties they gave to the FBI and CIA but I believe it
was worth it as long as the government remains effective in anti-terrorism measures and
continues to thwart plots conducted by anyone who strives against this great nation, from radical
Jihads to envious nations.
Works Cited
Miller,Debra, 2007, The Patriot Act, Detriot:Lucent Books
Gerdes,Louise, 2005, The Patriot Act: Opposing Veiwpoints, Detroit:Greenhaven Press
The Patriot Act,http://www.justice.gov/archive/ll/highlights.htm
The Patriot Act,http://www.npr.org/news/specials/patriotact/patriotactdeal.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Patriot_Act, October 8,2011, The Patriot Act
The Patriot Act violates many of the amendments in the Bill of Rights. The First Amendment, for example, gives American citizens freedom of speech, press, and religion. The Patriot Act allows the government to monitor the religious and political papers and institutions of citizens that are not even reasonable suspects for criminal activity. Church,
The G.I. Bill then passed both houses of Congress with many of Rankin’s restrictions dropped and the re...
by the people trying to pass this bill. But how did the bill become a
Senate Historical Office. “About the Senate Committee System”. Senate.gov, September, 2002. Web. Feb. 25, 2012.
freedom that they had wanted when they went to war with Britain. The people wanted
U.S. Congressional Record - Senate. Congressional Record, V. 153, PT. 2. Political Proceedings & Debates, Washington: United States Government Printing Office, 2007.
“Many opponents have come to see the patriot act as a violation of the fourth amendment to the U. S constitution.” (Belanger, Newton 2). The side effect of the patriot act is that it weakens many rights. This act weakens the fourth amendment which is our privacy protection. The fourth amendment allows citizens to be protected from unreasonable searches without a warrant. The police search suspects mainly because of their race or ethnic group.
Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001. Pub. L. 107-56. 26 October 2001
The bill was debated and negotiated for nearly six years in Congress, and finally passed amid unusual circumstances. Several times in the legislative process the bill had appeared to have failed, but each time was saved when a couple of Congressmen and Senators switched positions on the bill. The bill was introduced in the House of Representatives early on June 25, 2003 as H.R. 1, sponsored by Speak Dennis Hastert. All that day and the next the bill was debated, and it was apparent that the bill would be very divisive. In June 27, a floor vote was taken. After the initial electronic vote, the count stood at 214 yeses an...
The U.S. Patriot Act was set in place to better serve our country against terrorism. The U.S. Patriot Act is an Acronym for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Acts (Lithwick). This act is to punish terrorist actions and improve law enforcement not only in the United States but also around the world. The United States Patriot Act consists of over 1,000 sections that describe the act in great detail. The sections include, but are not limited to, the power extended to the government by The U.S. Patriot Act to deport and incarcerate non citizens. With the U.S. Patriot Act a person’s phone line can be tapped, records of any and all purchases checked, and even library records searched. This Act also has sections to help money laundering, expand our country’s border protection, strengthening the extent of criminal laws and provide for people suffering from any type of terrorism acts (Huffman).
The. Historically, democratic representatives display more favor in continuing or increasing these expenditures for assistance programs. West Virginia’s voting for state and Congressional representatives has been overwhelmingly democratic since the 1960’s. For example, the late, great Robert C. Byrd was a democratic US Senator from 1959 to 2010. His efforts to bring pork barrel spending and ear marks to benefit his represented citizens was the understood methodology of his incumbency.
What is the Patriot Act? The USA PATRIOT act was signed into law quickly without much debate back in 2001 right after the September 11th attacks in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania. The Patriot Act touches almost everything from more funding for businesses that are affected by terrorist attacks all the way to funding affected families of terrorist attacks. The main reason the Patriot act was put in place was to prevent future terrorist attacks on U.S. soil and overseas attacks on Americans. With the act the government would try to stop the attacks before they take place to prevent American deaths. The Patriot Act was put in place to protect America, and at the time many agreed with the Act and went along with it. That was at first. That was when many Americans felt threatened for their safety. Now, many have had time to reflect back on the Patriot Act and feel differently (Ball 2004 p. 78-84).
The Sedition Act of 1918.? 2003. The 'Secondary' of the 'Se 22 November 2004. The?Espionage Act.? 2004.
June 14, 1995 with a vote of 84-16. The Leahy bill does not pass, but is
Domestic Surveillance Citizens feeling protected in their own nation is a crucial factor for the development and advancement of that nation. The United States’ government has been able to provide this service for a small tax and for the most part it is money well spent. Due to events leading up to the terrifying attacks on September 11, 2001 and following these attacks, the Unites States’ government has begun enacting certain laws and regulations that ensure the safety of its citizens. From the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) of 1978 to the most recent National Security Agency scandal, the government has attempted and for the most part succeeded in keeping domestic safety under control. Making sure that the balance between obtaining enough intelligence to protect the safety of the nation and the preservation of basic human rights is not extremely skewed, Congress has set forth requisites in FISA which aim to balance the conflicting goals of privacy and security; but the timeline preceding this act has been anything but honorable for the United States government.