Urge Congress to Fix Flaws in the Patriot Act

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Urge Congress to Fix Flaws in the Patriot Act

 

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The Patriot Act passed a mere 45 days after the September

11 attacks with virtually no debate or discussion. Now,

thanks to this legislation and other White House actions, the

government can conduct secret “sneak and peek†searches

of your home without immediately notifying you, can get a

list of the books you have obtained from your local

bookstore and require your bookseller to keep this hidden from you,

can keep a file on which churches you attend and the

medications you use -- even if these activities have nothing to

do with the fight against terrorism.

 

In response to this vast overreach in government powers,

several Members of Congress will soon introduce bipartisan

legislation to fix problems in the Patriot Act without

weakening any of the new authority it provided to fight

terrorism.

 

This legislation -- the Security and Freedom Ensured (SAFE)

Act -- is being introduced this week by Senators Larry

Craig (R-ID), John Sununu (R-NH) and Richard Durbin (D-IL). It

would surgically add key checks and balances, like court

review, on some of the Patriot Act provisions most prone to

abuse.

 

Take Action! Urge your Members of Congress to support

corrections to the USA Patriot Act and other domestic

surveillance powers. Congress must act to ensure government powers

adhere to the Bill of Rights.

 

The Patriot Act broadly expanded government access to

secret search warrants. This allows law enforcement agents to

break into your home or business, root around, seize

property and delay telling you for an indefinite period. The new

SAFE Act would allow these warrants, but ensure that they

are only used when notice of the search would endanger

somebody’s health, cause the destruction of evidence, invite

witness tampering or result in somebody fleeing prosecution.

 

The SAFE Act would stop the Patriot Act’s infringement

on free speech. The Patriot Act created a new and overly

expansive definition of “domestic terrorism†that could

apply to certain protesters, including abortion demonstrators

or anti-war protesters. The government should not be able

to label protesters as “terrorists†without proper

justification. The SAFE Act would link this power to specific

terrorism crimes to reduce that risk.

 

In 2003, for the first time in history, the American

government used more secret intelligence wiretaps—which come

with fewer checks against abuse—than criminal wiretaps.

To combat this trend toward secret eavesdropping and spying,

the SAFE Act would include new reporting requirements. This

is critical to ensuring that the government does not abuse

its counter-terrorism powers.

 

Click here to contact your Members of Congress about this

issue.

 

 

Don'tAllowCongressExpand the PatriotAct in Secret(ACTION)

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