Making "PATRIOT" permanent.Renewal of the so-called PATRIOT Act Patriot Act: see USA PATRIOT Act. for 10 years effectively means that U.S. citizens will "have their constitutional rights put on hold for a decade," wrote Representative Ron Paul (R-Texas). "If the PATRIOT Act is constitutional and badly needed, why were sunset provisions A statutory provision providing that a particular agency, benefit, or law will expire on a particular date, unless it is reauthorized by the legislature. Federal and state governments grew dramatically in the 1950s and 1960s. included at all? If it's unconstitutional unconstitutional adj. referring to a statute, governmental conduct, court decision or private contract (such as a covenant which purports to limit transfer of real property only to Caucasians) which violate one or more provisions of the U. S. Constitution. and pernicious pernicious /per·ni·cious/ (per-nish´us) tending toward a fatal issue. per·ni·cious adj. Tending to cause death or serious injury; deadly. , why not abolish it immediately? All of this nonsense about sunsets and reauthorizations merely distracts us from the real issue, which is personal liberty. America was not founded on a promise of security; it was founded on a promise of personal liberty to pursue happiness." As luck of something else would have it, the vote took place immediately after the recent round of subway and bus bombings in London, a terror rampage that prompted many of the act's defenders to assert that critics of the act would be morally liable were such atrocities to be committed here. This refrain was both predictable and utterly absurd, points out Rep. Paul. "Let's remember that London is the most heavily monitored city in the world, with surveillance cameras recording virtually all public activity in the city center," noted the congressman. "British police are not hampered by our 4th Amendment nor our numerous due process requirements. In other words Adv. 1. in other words - otherwise stated; "in other words, we are broke" put differently , they can act without any constitutional restrictions, just as supporters of the PATRIOT Act want our own police to act. Despite this they were notable to prevent the bombings, proving that even a wholesale surveillance society cannot be made sale against determined terrorists.... The London bombings don't prove the need for the PATRIOT Act--they prove the folly of it." Former deputy assistant Attorney General John C. Yoo, one of the chief architects of the PATRIOT Act, explained in a February 24, 2004 interview with the California Patriot The California Patriot is an independent, student-run, glossy-covered magazine from the University of California, Berkeley. Overview The magazine's mission is to promote conservative politics and opinion at the University. that the Bush administration's homeland security Noun 1. Homeland Security - the federal department that administers all matters relating to homeland security Department of Homeland Security executive department - a federal department in the executive branch of the government of the United States doctrine is based on the idea that "no artificial line could be drawn between foreign and domestic threats." The primary achievement of the PATRIOT Act, Yoo continued, "was taking down the artificial line." As Yoo put it in a separate interview, the executive branch is now "using the legal tools of wartime" in dealing with matters of domestic security. In essence, this approach permits the president and his minions to make war on the American public--in the name of "protecting" us. Yoo has described himself as a person who subscribes to the view espousing "limited government in areas aside from foreign affairs foreign affairs pl.n. Affairs concerning international relations and national interests in foreign countries. and security." (Emphasis added.) Under this formula there are no limits on government intervention as long it is conducted in the name of "security." |
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