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House, Senate Republicans Reach Deal on Patriot Act

Discussion in 'BBS Hangout: Debate & Discussion' started by insane man, Dec 8, 2005.

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  1. insane man

    insane man Member

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    i think its utterly ridiculous to extend forever parts of a provision that were enacted specifically for a single incident and a single threat. why wouldn't there be automatic sunset clauses for every aspect of this act (though i think most of the act is bogus) when hopefully someday terrorism won't be a big issue? i know it can be repealed but still.


    House, Senate Republicans Reach Deal on Patriot Act
    Bipartisan Group Says Won't Support Bill, Democrat Threatens Filibuster

    By Daniela Deane
    Washington Post Staff Writer
    Thursday, December 8, 2005; 6:39 PM

    House and Senate Republican negotiators, after arguing for months over their differing versions of the USA Patriot Act, have reached an agreement to extend the law that gives the government expanded powers to investigate suspected terrorists, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter announced today.

    But the announcement quickly raised protests. Sen. Patrick Leahy (Vt.), who headed the Senate Democrats on the conference committee, called for more work on the contentious issues and offered to extend the current legislation three months while negotiations continue. Another Democratic senator immediately threatened a filibuster to block the compromise bill, and a bipartisan group of senators issued a joint statement saying they were "gravely disappointed" with the deal and will not support it.

    "This is not a perfect bill, but a good bill," Specter (R-Pa.) said at a news conference announcing the deal, which took months of often-tense negotiations to reach. "I think it's well-balanced."

    The agreement makes permanent most parts of the Patriot Act and extends for four years two of the act's most controversial provisions. Those authorize roving wiretaps and give FBI agents access to library, business and hospital records.

    The legislation would also extend for four years a provision of a separate intelligence law passed last year that sets standards for monitoring "lone wolf" terrorists who are not connected to a foreign government.

    The House-passed bill had authorized these provisions for 10 years, while the Senate version accepted only a four-year term. Shortly before Thanksgiving, the House negotiators said they would accept a seven-year limit, but some senators kept pushing for a shorter time frame.

    The Patriot Act was approved overwhelmingly by Congress after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and the Pentagon. Sixteen provisions are due to expire Dec. 31.

    The law expands the government's surveillance and prosecutorial powers against suspected terrorists and their accomplices. Specter said the Senate will vote on the compromise bill next week. He said he did not expect Senate Democrats to use a filibuster to block the vote. And if they did, he did not expect it would be successful.

    But Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.), who was the only senator to vote against the bill in 2001, quickly threatened a filibuster. "I will do everything I can, including a filibuster, to stop this Patriot Act Conference Report, which does not include adequate safeguards to protect our constitutional freedoms," he said in a statement posted on his Web site.

    Feingold and five other senators issued a joint statement calling for more changes to the act.

    Leahy, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said in a statement posted on his Web site in the afternoon that Senate Democrats on the conference committee sent a letter to Specter and House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) suggesting that negotiators continue to work to craft a bipartisan compromise and that Congress pass a bill extending the Patriot Act for three months while those discussions are going on.

    "This was a missed opportunity to produce a bipartisan bill that would protect both Americans' security and their rights and liberties," said Leahy. "This is too important to the American people to rush through a flawed bill to meet some deadline that we have the ability to extend."

    Specter praised the Bush administration for helping broker the agreement and said the White House was "very, very happy with this bill because they're going to get a bill."

    Speaking to reporters, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales called the compromise a "win for the American people. Although he said the Justice Department was not in favor of putting time limits on the act, he said the compromise was "certainly something we can support."

    White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the "president urges both houses of Congress to act promptly to pass this critical piece of legislation."

    "The Patriot Act is critical to winning the war on terrorism," McClellan said.

    The American Civil Liberties Union denounced the deal and called on lawmakers to reject it because it impinges on the privacy of innocent citizens.
    © 2005 The Washington Post Company
    http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/08/AR2005120800892.html
     
    #1 insane man, Dec 8, 2005
  2. Deckard

    Deckard Blade Runner
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    Damn, I hope Democrats filibuster this assault on our freedoms.



    Keep D&D Civil.
     
    #2 Deckard, Dec 8, 2005
  3. thacabbage

    thacabbage Contributing Member

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    '08. God bless.
     
    #3 thacabbage, Dec 8, 2005
  4. mc mark

    mc mark Member

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    3 GOP senators have come out against this version of the PA. One of them is considering a filibuster with Feingold. Think about that.


    from Sen. Feingold ...

    ---------------------

    Bipartisan group of senators to oppose Patriot Act revision

    A bipartisan group of senators -- including three Republicans -- have said they will not support a deal between House and Senate negotiators on extension of the Patriot Act, RAW STORY has learned.

    The agreement will keep in place controversial provisions such as the ability of U.S. officials to pry into Americans' library records and to authorize "roving wiretaps." The Senate version of the bill had been less aggressive.

    Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) says he will filibuster the new agreement. The six senators opposing the conference report are: Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID), Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI), Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sen. Ken Salazar (D-CO), Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AL) and Sen. John Sununu (R-NH).

    http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Bipartisan_group_of_senators_to_oppose_1208.html
     
    #4 mc mark, Dec 8, 2005
  5. mc mark

    mc mark Member

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    Feingold/Warner?

    Warner/Feingold?

    hummmm.....
     
    #5 mc mark, Dec 8, 2005
  6. wnes

    wnes Contributing Member

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    Who says a Jew can't get elected to be US President? Feingold '08!
     
    #6 wnes, Dec 8, 2005
  7. thadeus

    thadeus Member

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    I hope this gets filibustered like a mother****er.

    The fact that so many are allowing any provision in the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. swindle to remain in place is as sure an indication as any (with the possible exception of campaign "donations") that the majority of both Democrats and Republicans are douchebags.
     
    #7 thadeus, Dec 8, 2005
  8. wnes

    wnes Contributing Member

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    By examining the responses in the Miami Airport shooting thread, I think your assessment is right on.
     
    #8 wnes, Dec 8, 2005
  9. mc mark

    mc mark Member

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    Excellent!!!

    Senate Rejects Extension of Patriot Act

    By JESSE J. HOLLAND, Associated

    WASHINGTON - The Senate on Friday rejected attempts to reauthorize several provisions of the USA Patriot Act as infringing too much on Americans' privacy and liberty, dealing a huge defeat to the Bush administration and Republican leaders.

    In a crucial vote early Friday, the bill's Senate supporters were not able to get the 60 votes needed to overcome a threatened filibuster by Sens. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Larry Craig, R-Idaho, and their allies. The final vote was 52-47.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051216/ap_on_go_co/patriot_act
     
    #9 mc mark, Dec 16, 2005
  10. FranchiseBlade

    FranchiseBlade Member
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    A great move in protecting our freedoms.
     
    #10 FranchiseBlade, Dec 16, 2005
  11. No Worries

    No Worries Member

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    In a crucial vote early Friday, the bill's Senate supporters were not able to get the 60 votes needed to overcome a threatened filibuster by Sens. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Larry Craig, R-Idaho, and their allies. The final vote was 52-47.

    Bush is losing his control of the Republican Senators. This is a BFD. 5 of the 55 Senate Republicans cross party lines and voted for the filibuster. To get cloture, Frist needed all the Republicans to stay home and 5 Democrats to cross (of which only 2 did.) BTW Frist voted against cloture for procedural reason; he now can later call another cloture vote. Thus, really only 4 out of 55 Republican Senators crossed party lines.

    Roll Call Vote for H.R. 3199
    Non-party line votes:

    Craig (R-ID), Nay
    Frist (R-TN), Nay
    Hagel (R-NE), Nay
    Murkowski (R-AK), Nay
    Sununu (R-NH), Nay

    Johnson (D-SD), Yea
    Nelson (D-NE), Yea

    (and

    Jeffords (I-VT), Nay
    Dodd (D-CT), Not Voting )
     
    #11 No Worries, Dec 16, 2005
  12. Agent94

    Agent94 Member

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    The Republican from NE voted no and the Democrat from NE voted yes. Thats kind of strange.
     
    #12 Agent94, Dec 16, 2005
  13. No Worries

    No Worries Member

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    One is running for President and the other for his political life.
     
    #13 No Worries, Dec 16, 2005
  14. insane man

    insane man Member

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    i wanan have russ's kids.
     
    #14 insane man, Dec 16, 2005
  15. No Worries

    No Worries Member

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    Jack Cafferty on the administraion: Just Do it!

    Cafferty: Who cares if the Patriot Act get's renewed. Want to abuse our civil liberties-Just do it! Who cares about the Geneva conventions? Want to torture prisoners-Just do it! Who cares about rules concerning the identity of CIA gents. Want to reveal the name of a covert operative? Just do it!

    Who cares about whether the intelligence concerning WMD's is accurate. You want to invade Iraq? Just do it. Who cares about qualifications to serve on the nation's highest court. Want to nominate a personal friend with no qualifications? Just do it.

    And the latest outrage, which I read about in "The New York Times" this morning, who cares about needing a court order to eavesdrop on American citizens. Want to wiretap their phones conversations? Just do it.... What a joke. A very cruel, very sad joke.
     
    #15 No Worries, Dec 16, 2005
  16. KingCheetah

    KingCheetah Atomic Playboy

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    The Brothers Grimm avoiding this thread like the plague.
     
    #16 KingCheetah, Dec 16, 2005
  17. Invisible Fan

    Invisible Fan Member

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    Does anyone know which party-controlled Congress has passed the most bills that restrict personal civil liberties, since after WW2? I have a hunch that it's almost a tie.

    I wonder if Mango still frequents this forum...
     
    #17 Invisible Fan, Dec 16, 2005
  18. geeimsobored

    geeimsobored Member

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    Considering the Democratic Party has controlled Congress for the longest since WWII,, I would guess by sheer probability it would be them. But then again there has been a complete political realignment since the 80s so we're dealing with a different time with parties that stand for different ideas.
     
    #18 geeimsobored, Dec 16, 2005
  19. Deckard

    Deckard Blade Runner
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    I think he does.


    Why would it matter who did what decades ago? Our freedoms are under assault today. They are under assault by this administration, and everyone should be damned concerned about it.



    Keep D&D Civil.
     
    #19 Deckard, Dec 16, 2005
  20. DaDakota

    DaDakota Balance wins
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    Bush is pissed that they won't renew it

    And I say...too damned bad !!

    This is a HORRIBLE act, and a violation of our constitutional rights.

    The sooner we swing back to the left as a country and get rid of this modern day McCarthy, the better.

    DD
     
    #20 DaDakota, Dec 17, 2005
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