Libertarian Party: Bush's Patriot Act II is Every Tyrant's Dream

===============================
NEWS FROM THE LIBERTARIAN PARTY
2600 Virginia Avenue, NW, Suite 100
Washington DC 20037
World Wide Web: http://www.LP.org
===============================
For release: March 6, 2003
===============================
For additional information:
George Getz, Communications Director
Phone 202) 333-0008
E-Mail: pressreleases@hq.LP.org
===============================

WASHINGTON, DC -- Here's great news for everyone who supported the USA Patriot Act, Libertarians say: The Justice Department has secretly drafted follow-up legislation that would allow the government to make secret arrests, create a vast new DNA database of "suspected terrorists" and even strip Americans of their citizenship and deport them.

"If you liked the Patriot Act, you're going to love the sequel," said George Getz, Libertarian Party communications director. "Patriot II offers awesome government power, rapidly disappearing freedom, and an action-packed war on the Constitution. You'll be sitting on the edge of your seat as your liberties are stripped away."

The Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003 (DSEA) – dubbed "Patriot II" because of its similarities to the USA Patriot Act – was secretly written by the Justice Department in January and has not yet been introduced in Congress. A draft of the legislation was leaked recently to the Center for Public Integrity and posted on its website.

"The original Patriot Act got rave reviews from authoritarians everywhere," Getz noted. "Rogue FBI agents conducting 'sneak-and-peak searches,' an e-mail spy scheme named Carnivore, secret deportations – this legislation was every petty tyrant's dream.

"It opened to a packed House – and Senate – in October 2001 and got a nearly unanimous 'thumbs up.' Clearly there's a market out there for less freedom, and Washington is rushing to cash in with a sequel."

The plot for Patriot II: A group of unscrupulous politicians in a large, Western democracy capitalize on a terrorist attack in order to vastly expand their powers. They embark on an effort to convince their subjects that by surrendering their freedom they will be protected from terrorists and other criminals.

Working along with a "Department of Justice," they subvert the Constitution by secretly crafting legislation that allows the government to:

* Make secret arrests, overturning a federal court decision requiring the government to identify persons detained in the 9/11 investigation.

* Issue secret subpoenas, and jail people who reveal to anyone except their attorney that they are the subject of a secret investigation.

* Strip citizens of their citizenship for associating with a group designated by the attorney general as a "terrorist organization," even if the individual's conduct is legal.

* Allow the attorney general to deport any foreigner, even a permanent legal resident, whose presence he deems "inconsistent with national security."

* Create a database of DNA collected from "suspected terrorists" and from non-citizens suspected of ordinary crimes.

* Conduct a wiretap for 15 days without a judge's approval, and monitor an individual's Internet and chat room visits for 48 hours without a court order.

* Weaken the Freedom of Information Act to prevent journalists from learning who is being held in police custody.

Though Patriot II is expected to be a hit with politicians and much of the public, not everyone will be buying a ticket, Getz predicted.

"Libertarians and other freedom-loving Americans have panned Patriot II for obvious reasons," he said. "It's burdened by the same clichéd cast of characters as the original – a devious attorney general, an opportunistic president, and pandering politicians who hoodwink people into surrendering their freedom.

What's cheap about it?

What isn't cheap about it? You threw out a dung cart load's worth of accusations against the "evulll" federal government for somehow not preventing 9/11, and I responded that you didn't know what you were talking about.

I said fedgov dropped the ball, not the American citizen.

And I said they did no such thing, and that implying that they did is 20-20 hindsight.

I said the INS had become the welcome wagon

How many foreign citizens have overstayed their visa or committed some other technical violation of immigration rules then DIDN'T subsequently hijack aircraft into a building? The 9/11 hijackers could have been in this country completely legally and the same thing would have happened. The toughest immigration laws on the planet wouldn't have prevented the hijackings.

Those aren't "cheap political points" my dear.

I'm not "your dear" (I haven't had my shots and I only date within my own species).

So if you would have only bothered to read the thread Strela, then you would know this and you wouldn't be bothering me with questions about things I already typed in black and white.

I wasn't questioning you, I was ridiculing you.

Now, go and sleep it off. You're beginning to sound like a looney.

IKYABWAI. A pathetic comeback, even for you. Go watch another episode of "The Simpsons" so you can pick up some more debating tactics.

With all due respect, I think your dislike of the Libertarians got the best of you on this one. Are you really prepared to claim that all of those pilots that have been clamoring for arming pilots are knee-jerkers and bunker kooks

Respect returned. But, respectfully, I said no such thing. The point I made (and stand by) was that simply handing a pistol to every pilot can cause more problems than it solves, and wouldn't have prevented a dedicated enemy from storming a cockpit.

IMO, what certainly could have defeated the terrorists in question would have been secure cockpit doors, something the airline industry refused to spend the money on and the incompetent sycophants in the FAA refused to require.

"We have constructed the most impregnable series of fortifications in the history of modern national defense."
Andre Maginot.

(And if he didn't actually say that, then he should have).

Using a hijacked airliner as a mobile weapon was a new paradigm (and a new low) for terrorists. Do you also wish to blame physicians for not actively seeking a cure for diseases that no one has contracted?

The airlines didn't have a problem wiring thousands and thousands of seats with those [expletive deleted] LCD spam screens

My laptop's screen neatly blocks out the view from those stupid things. I do need to figure out some way to watch an entire 2-hour movie on long flights without killing the battery in my laptop though - its only good for about 1.5 hours.

but they couldn't afford to hook up a $49 webcam so the pilots could see what was happening in the passenger compartment?

I cannot find anything wrong with this idea, but have not heard it discussed by anyone post 9/11. Any theory as to why?

I applaud the efforts of those in government that are doing something effective to see that this type of thing doesn't happen again but I have yet to see any of the screwups held responsible.

I cannot consider failure to read minds a "screwup", and do not feel the need to punish people for not being prescient. As human beings, we bind our wounds, devise ways to help ensure that 9/11 cannot happen again, and move on.

What's the matter Strela, still hungover?

What isn't cheap about it? You threw out a dung cart load's worth of accusations against the "evulll" federal government for somehow not preventing 9/11, and I responded that you didn't know what you were talking about.

1) No I did not, I stated a few facts.

2) "evulll" is not a quote.

3) If I don't know what I am talking about then apparently no one else does either, the breakdowns that contributed to 9/11 are well documented.. One Link, of many..

How many foreign citizens have overstayed their visa or committed some other technical violation of immigration rules then DIDN'T subsequently hijack aircraft into a building?

And how many of those belonged here Strela? Tell me. Further, how is that relevant? As they are all criminals by definition.

The 9/11 hijackers could have been in this country completely legally and the same thing would have happened. The toughest immigration laws on the planet wouldn't have prevented the hijackings.

But it didn't happen that way my dear, as it happens only 9 (Nine) of them were here legally, out of 19 (Ninteen)

Another Link.

Now, logically if they weren't here (because they had been DEPORTED!) then they couldn't have hijacked our plane. So, again you're just spewing mouth foam and you don't know what you're talking about.

I wasn't questioning you, I was ridiculing you.

No, you were making (ahem) "cheap political points"

It's all you do.. Toss wild accusations around and rant like a drunk!

Go watch another episode of "The Simpsons" so you can pick up some more debating tactics.

Unless you have something more substantial to offer (which is doubtful) then I will happily leave you with the last word.

Here is a libertarian platform that reasonable people can support. Can you?
__________________________________

WHEREAS libertarian believe in limited government, individual freedom and personal responsibility;

WHEREAS we believe that government has no money nor power not derived from the consent of the people;

WHEREAS we believe that people
have the right to keep the fruits of their labor; and

WHEREAS we believe in upholding the U. S. Constitution as the supreme law of the land;

BE IT RESOLVED that libertarians everywhere endorse the following principles:

1.0 FEDERALISM
1.1 The power of the federal government should be limited, as per the tenth amendment to the U. S. Constitution.
2.0 EDUCATION
2.1 The U. S. Department of Education should be abolished, leaving education decision making at the state, local or personal level.
2.2 Parents have the right to spend their money on the school or method of schooling they deem appropriate for their children.
3.0 HEALTH CARE
3.1 Free market health care alternatives, such as medical savings accounts, should be available to everyone, including senior citizens.
3.2 The federal entitlement to Medicare should be abolished, leaving health care decision making regarding the elderly at the state, local, or personal level.
4.0 TAXATION
4.1 The tax system of the United States should be overhauled.
4.2 There should be a national debate discussing various alternative means of taxation including but not limited to a single flat income tax, repealing the income tax and replacing it with a national sales tax, and reducing spending to the point where the income tax can be repealed without the need to replace it with a national sales tax or any other form of taxation.
4.3 The capital gains tax should be *eliminated*.
4.4 The inheritance tax should be *eliminated*.
4.5 The new tax system should be implemented *promptly*.
5.0 WELFARE
5.1 The U. S. Department of Health and Human Services should be abolished, leaving decision making on welfare and related matters at the state, local or personal level. All Americans have the right to keep the fruits of their labor to support themselves, their families and whatever charities they so choose, without interference from the federal government.
5.2 All able-bodied Americans have the responsibility to support themselves and their families.
6.0 CRIMINAL JUSTICE
6.1 Every American has the right to keep and bear arms. We affirm our support for the second amendment of the U. S. Constitution.
6.2 All people, regardless of position in the public or private sector, should be held equally accountable under the law.
6.3 The *only* litmus test for Supreme Court or other judges should be their determination to accurately interpret, not amend, the Constitution. Judges have *no* authority to make new law.
7.0 CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM
7.1 Election campaigns should not be subsidized by tax payers.
7.2 No individual should be compelled to support a political candidate he or she does not support. Government should not empower trade unions to collect funds from their members for use as political contributions without their members' expressed consent.
7.3 All limits on campaign contributions should be eliminated.
7.4 There should be full and timely public disclosure of all the sources and amounts of all campaign contributions upon their receipt.
8.0 FEDERAL BUDGET
8.1 There should be an amendment to the U. S. Constitution to require a balanced budget, provided it includes a supermajority requirement to raise taxes and provided it does not empower the judiciary to unilaterally raise taxes.
8.2 Honest accounting dictates that all federal expenditures should be on budget.
8.3 Each budget should be derived based upon the justification for and needs of each program, with no program being either budgeted for or increased automatically.
9.0 GOVERNMENT REFORM
9.1 The U. S. Department of Commerce should be abolished, per the tenth amendment of the U. S. Constitution.
9.2 The National Endowment for the Arts should be abolished, per the tenth amendment of the U. S. Constitution.
9.3 The National Endowment for the Humanities should be abolished, per the tenth amendment of the U. S. Constitution.
9.4 The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development should be abolished, per the tenth amendment of the U. S. Constitution.
9.5 Subsidies to agricultural and other businesses should be eliminated.
9.6 Corporate taxes should be eliminated simultaneously and proportionally with the elimination of subsidies to businesses.
9.7 Recommendations by the Grace Commission and the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) should be reviewed and implemented, where possible, beginning immediately.
9.8 Privatization of government assets, management and services should be implemented for cost-effectiveness wherever applicable.
10.0 TRADE
10.1 The U. S. government should inhibit neither the exportation of U. S. goods and services worldwide, nor the importation of goods and services.
10.2 The United States should not be answerable to any governing body outside the United States for its trade policy.
11.0 DEFENSE
11.1 U. S. military should be deployed only where there is a clear threat to vital U. S. interests and only with the consent of the U. S. Congress.
11.2 It is the duty of the federal government to provide a system to defend against missile attacks.
11.3 No branch of the military should be put in harm's way without a clear entrance and exit strategy and a goal, which when achieved, constitutes victory.
11.4 U. S military personnel should always be under U. S. command.
11.5 U. S. armed forces should be all-volunteer.
11.6 Military draft registration should be eliminated.
11.7 Foreign aid is often more harmful than helpful and should be curtailed.
12.0 PROPERTY RIGHTS
12.1 The government should not take private property without just compensation.
12.2 All unconstitutional regulation of private property should be repealed.
13.0 DRUGS
13.1 While recognizing the harm that drug abuse causes society, we also recognize that government drug policy has been ineffective and has led to frightening abuses of the Bill of Rights which could affect the personal freedom of any American. We, therefore, support alternatives to the War on Drugs.
13.2 Per the tenth amendment to the U. S. Constitution, matters such as drugs should be handled at the state or personal level.
13.3 All laws which give license to violate the Bill of Rights should be repealed.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.