December 17, 2005

Bush Raps Senators on Blocking Patriot Act

From AP via Yahoo! News

WASHINGTON -
President Bush said Saturday that senators who are blocking renewal of the terrorism-fighting Patriot Act are acting irresponsibly and standing in the way of protecting the country from attack.


[...]

Some of the most contentious elements of the Patriot Act include powers granted to law enforcement agencies to gain access in secret to library and medical records and other personal data during investigations of suspected terrorist activity.

The law allows the government to conduct roving wiretaps involving multiple phones and to wiretap "lone wolf" terrorists who may operate on their own, without control from a foreign agent or power.

click here for all of it

Bush just doesn't understand that you can't catch terrorists like that, because they don't work that way. Library and medical records? Wiretaps? I don't think terrorists look up books about terrorism, I doubt they tell their doctors that they got a cold because they're a terrorist, and it's foolish to think that they talk on the phone and just flat out say, "Dirka-dirka-dirka, lets highjack some planes".

I think the Patriot Act is intentionally used as a public opinion watch dog. They're not looking for terrorists, they're curious about who's with them and who's against them.

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