Posted on 12/16/2005 9:47:11 AM PST by NormsRevenge
WASHINGTON - The Senate on Friday rejected attempts to reauthorize several provisions of the USA Patriot Act as infringing too much on Americans' privacy, dealing a major defeat to President Bush and Republican leaders.
In a crucial vote Friday morning as Congress raced toward adjournment, the bill's Senate supporters were not able to garner the 60 votes necessary 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, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and GOP congressional leaders had lobbied fiercely to make most of the expiring Patriot Act provisions permanent, and add new safeguards and expiration dates to the two most controversial parts: roving wiretaps and secret warrants for books, records and other items from businesses, hospitals and organizations such as libraries.
Making most of the act's provisions permanent was a priority for both the Bush administration and Republican leaders on Capitol Hill before Congress adjourns for the year.
The House on Wednesday passed a House-Senate compromise bill to renew the Act that supporters say added significant safeguards to the law.
But the law's critics, such as Feingold and Craig, say they don't want the Patriot Act to expire — they just want enough time to improve the bill to the point where it doesn't infringe on American liberties. Bush, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, and House Speaker Dennis Hastert have said they won't accept a short-term extension of the law.
"In the war on terror, we cannot afford to be without these vital tools for a single moment," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said earlier today before the Senate vote.
Congress passed the Patriot Act overwhelmingly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The law expanded the government's surveillance and prosecutorial powers against suspected terrorists, their associates and financiers.
The bill's opponents say the original act was rushed into law, and Congress should take more time now to make sure the rights of innocent Americans are safeguarded before making most of the expiring provisions permanent.
They say the current Patriot Act gives government too much power to investigate people's private lives.
Or mass violations of constitutional rights (assuming some reporter forces the government to release them so that we know about them) before the idiots on the other side can get their act together.
especially when the enemy is already inside the gate.
Bush needs to have a press conference tonight and tell the American people exactly what our Congress and the Democrat party has done to us. They have made another 9/11 imminent through their political actions. Disgraceful!
That's the problem. Four three years we've been hearing about people's rights being violated, WITH NO EVIDENCE. If (when) we get hit again, I suspect you'll be screaming about another "failure to connect the dots". We can't have it both ways.
Ok, and hey, just because you are paranoid, don't think they all aren't really out to get you.
"in a meeting with GOP congressional leaders, was quoted as saying: "Stop throwing the Constitution in my face. It's just a goddamned piece of paper"
That comes from this:
http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/article_7779.shtml
Know anything about this jouralist's reputation? Solid? Not?
Well, I can't debate you there. Bush is late to the game in actually realizing that he has to, gulp, show some sack.
"Ok, and hey, just because you are paranoid, don't think they all aren't really out to get you."
Geraldine, the mirror.
He was solid when he was reporting on Clinton's crimes.
But now that he is criticizing and reporting on Bush, all of a sudden he is not a reliable source here at FR.
Figure that one out.
I would have felt a whole lot more comfortable about extending the Patriot Act if, first, no portions would be made permanent and still require regular review and approval and second, that someone could have demonstrated how effective it had been by specifying terrorists acts and individuals who were stopped specifically due to the Patriot Act. Voting to extend it without any true metric of its success or failure and instead relying purely upon the politics of the situation is a bad thing.
I would be glad to if they would change the Senate rules that required a real filabuster rather than "okay, they're gonna filabuster, let's move on".
Let the rats stand there for days reading the phone book, holding up all other business. It'd be like when the republicans "shut down the goobermint", if you'll recall the public would go nuts and if the LSM could be forced into showing clips from it it'd happen again.
Let Frist get in the front of the cameras and rant that the rats are holding up the business of the people, etc. with their reading of the phone book.
The non-filabuster filabuster is the biggest pile of lazy assed crap that's ever happened in DC and that's saying a lot.
That's because there's hardly a dime's worth of different between the two parties; most of both will sell us out to get invited to the right cocktail parties. "What, a real filabuster? How quaint, you must be kidding?"
Don't believe me? Write your republican senator and ask him/her why it is the way it is and see if you get a reply that's even close to the question.
It is a defeat for America and our national security. However to the chagrin of the AP, we are going to take full advantage of this treasonous act by the democrats and beat them very hard politically during next year midterm elections campaign.
I hate to say it (and I hope it never happens), but the only thing that will wake people up is another attack.
Thomas Sowell made a good analogy about this. When the polio vaccine was created, the incidents of polio declined sharply. After a few years, people stopped getting vaccinated because the number of cases was almost nil, so they figured the problem was over. Consequently, polio cases started to climb because people weren't getting vaccinated.
The problem is still there, even though we choose to believe we have it under control.
The plots the terrorists have been planning for the past few months (or years) just got a whole lot more feasible.
Specifically?
If there were going to be an actual talkathon on the Patriot Act, what would probably happen is that a Dem would get recognized, talk for a while, and then suggest the absence of a quorum. That would start a quorum call that could only be rescinded by unanimous consent or the presence of an actual quorum (51) on the Senate floor. The Republicans could try to get a vote on the bill by unanimous consent, but any Dem could object and we'd be back to the standoff.
Bottom line is that unless you have 60 votes in the Senate you're at the mercy of the minority. Once you have those 60 votes, there's nothing to stop you.
Conservatives hope he doesn't.
Yeah. Cuz all of our lives have just been hell ever since the Patriot Act was passed.
Here's a word of advice for all Americans - if you don't want to be a suspect, don't behave in suspicious ways.
The Republicans should let the Democrats really filibuster the Patriot Acts. If they do this, the democrats will be crushed in the public arena.
Nor I.
I have, in many cases, been one of those that many here refer to as a "Bushbot". I have waited ... waited ... and waited some more, for some signs of "life", both from the Republicans and the President.
Alas, the patient is about to be declared dead.
Perhaps it will change, but I no longer hold out much hope.
We aren't going to vote these fools out of office. That is convincingly evident, and I know of no other recourse.
Other than that, I'm a happy guy! ;)
I'm as conservative as can be. I'll be quite satisfied when he wins it.
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