Comments on: Still temporary. Still PATRIOTic.

Still temporary. Still PATRIOTic.

anarch — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:00:04 -0800

USA PATRIOT is up for renewal again. Tim Nichols of the Independent Examiner reports that "nobody notices" as Mike Rogers (R-MI) floats the renewal. As we noted last year during another quiet renewal, this is not the first time the Obama administration has been confronted with the idea. While groups as disparate as the Cato Institute and the Randolph Bourne Institute's antiwar.com speak out against the possibility, mainstream media sources seem uninterested.

By: bearwife

bearwife — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:02:22 -0800

Civil liberties: still not newsworthy.

By: Mister_A

Mister_A — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:02:33 -0800

The great thing about the way news works now is that a lot of stories are now picked up from the internet. Many times my wife will see a news story and I'll say, "I saw that on MetaFilter Tuesday!" Point being, posts like this help issues bubble up and become stories in the national media.

By: msbutah

msbutah — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:17:10 -0800

I wonder if the rabid spending slashers would bat an eye at the cost of the Patriot Act? Perhaps it's time to turn them on to something worth gutting, instead of trying to repeal HCR?

By: AugustWest

AugustWest — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:18:19 -0800

Patriot Act is everything but.

By: Mister_A

Mister_A — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:19:30 -0800

They chilled out on gutting the HCR when the OMB (I think it was) pointed out that it would cost a couple hundred billion to do so. If these guys are serious about cutting, I agree, DHS and especially DoD are Depts. that should be scrutinized and right-sized.

By: blue_beetle

blue_beetle — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:22:09 -0800

Patriot Act is everything but. False. The Patriot Act is EXACTLY what it purports to be, something acting as a patriotic.

By: HuronBob

HuronBob — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:22:56 -0800

I'm ashamed to say that Mike Rogers is my Representative (in name only, he has refused to meet with constituents for years). I can, without reservation say, anything with his name on it should be opposed.

By: cjorgensen

cjorgensen — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:26:04 -0800

Is it the .com or .org site that's up for renewal??

By: DaddyNewt

DaddyNewt — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:31:08 -0800

Is this something I would have to have "Civil Rights" to understand?

By: Eideteker

Eideteker — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:32:57 -0800

The only reason it hasn't been enshrined in an Amendment to the Constitution is that it would be a step down to be added to the document it supersedes. (oooh buuurn!)

By: Eideteker

Eideteker — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:35:14 -0800

BtW, if my fellow NY mefites ever elect me to Congress (I'll take over for Rangel, who represents the area where I live), I will do my best to work "oooh burrrrn" and similar phrases into my congressional rhetoric. Just throwing that out there.

By: jeffburdges

jeffburdges — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:43:06 -0800

Ironically, we recently learned that now one tip suffices to add a name to the terrorist watch list. Epic lulz if a couple senators kills this using rotating secret holds. It'd be ironic since Republicans just used those to staved off the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, which officially had unanimous support. Btw, Republicans had previously gutted WPEA act of protections for holders of security clearances. Also, tomorrow anonymous has rallies in support of wikileaks.

By: Xurando

Xurando — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:44:36 -0800

Is it the .com or .org site that's up for renewal?? dhs.gov

By: thsmchnekllsfascists

thsmchnekllsfascists — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:49:40 -0800

By: tapesonthefloor

tapesonthefloor — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:56:42 -0800

I can't even imagine how politically difficult it would be to not renew the Patriot Act at this point. It's barbed policy: easy to slide in; impossible to slide out. This results in what's referred to as a downward spiral, but that's a metaphor for another day.

By: Legomancer

Legomancer — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:58:24 -0800

This is right up there with the TSA. There isn't anyone in DC who wants their name associated with taking it down for fear of something happening down the road that they'll be blamed for. We'll never be rid of either.

By: jeffburdges

jeffburdges — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:03:44 -0800

Check out the strange shit Congress did to extend the Patriot Act.

By: Joey Michaels

Joey Michaels — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:26:55 -0800

Who are these non-politician people who like the Patriot Act? Conservatives and Tea-Baggers seem to largely hate most aspects of it (though, perhaps, they don't associate those things with the acts), progressives hate it, moderates hate it. Is there an enormous, majority groundswell belief in the value of it that I'm totally unaware of?

By: drjimmy11

drjimmy11 — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:53:12 -0800

This is right up there with the TSA. There isn't anyone in DC who wants their name associated with taking it down for fear of something happening down the road that they'll be blamed for I don't have numbers, but I bet more than half of Americans are willing to take the risk of "something happening" in exchange for civil liberties and less painful trips through the airport. The problem is, it's never put to the test. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy because, frankly, Obama and almost every Democratic member of Congress are utterly lacking in moral courage. A lot of people might respect them for doing what's right at the risk of a few votes, but it looks like we won't find out anytime soon.

By: phearlez

phearlez — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:54:14 -0800

jeffburdges, this section from that link is actually not unusual at all:

You see, H.R. 3961 originally started with that title and subject, and it passed the House in November. Then, this past Wednesday, Majority Leader Harry Reid ripped the guts out of the bill and replaced it with the Patriot extensions. The Senate then passed that version of the bill and sent it back to the House, where it was approved Thursday night.

The arcane way Congress behaves and moves things around causes this sort of thing to happen all the time. I don't recall the specifics of why but it's not about deception, it's a procedural move.

By: drjimmy11

drjimmy11 — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:54:19 -0800

And hell, Bush looked at the FBI report that more-or-less predicted 9/11, said "well you covered your asses," and ignored it. That's not a conspiracy theory; it's public record. And he got elected to another term.

By: drjimmy11

drjimmy11 — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:55:06 -0800

And if *I* ever get elected to Congress, I promise to vote against anything with "USA," "patriot" or the name of a child in the title without even bothering to read it.

By: theBigKahuna

theBigKahuna — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 14:14:53 -0800

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Russ Feingold for being the only US Senator to vote against the Patriot Act during the original vote. Unfortunately for those of us who like it when our elected officials attempt to protect our rights, he was defeated in the recent election by a private business owner with no prior political experience, Ron Johnson. I had to Google "Ron Johnson patriot act" in order to find any information about his stance on it, since his campaign pretty much refused to discuss anything beyond creating jobs and cutting spending. It was worth the time to Google it for this gem alone: "I certainly share the concerns on civil liberties now that you have Barack Obama in power versus George Bush. I wasn't overly concerned with George Bush in power," he said. BTW, if Ron Johnson is half as good at creating jobs and cutting spending as he is at buying ads that *claim* he will create jobs and cut spending, than everyone will be gainfully employed and our budget will be balanced in no time.

By: eriko

eriko — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 14:22:31 -0800

I don't recall the specifics of why but it's not about deception, it's a procedural move. The fundamental reason is the Senate wants to introduce legislation that involves revenue is constitutionally required (Article I, Section 7) to originate in the House. That same section says that the Senate may "propose or concur with Amendments as on other Bills." So, when the Senate want to introduce a revenue bill, they grab a House bill that's been sent to them (thus, originating in the House) and amend it into a revenue bill. Also, grabbing a House resolution that's already been passed can skip several steps in the House -- it's already been passed, you're just voting on an amendment to the bill.

By: spitbull

spitbull — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 14:24:42 -0800

I was gonna say, the phrase "patriot act" always struck me as a perfect description for the Republican party. Like "dog act," or "circus act."

By: jhandey

jhandey — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 14:40:34 -0800

I've barely noticed anything having to do with the PATRIOT Act lately. Which is a horrifying thing for me to realize, personally, because it tells me that I'm getting used to it all, and that's what those who are dreaming up the PATRIOT Act's successors - because, believe me, there will be successors - are counting on. I'm depressed.

By: RobotVoodooPower

RobotVoodooPower — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 15:51:45 -0800

Water continues to heat, frogs continue not noticing.

By: rubah

rubah — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 19:23:06 -0800

http://www.contactingthecongress.org E-mail or call your representative. Futile, but then they can't claim ignorance of our desires!

By: odinsdream

odinsdream — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 20:17:37 -0800

Water continues to heat, frogs continue not noticing. This doesn't actually happen. Please stop using it as a metaphor. Check out the strange shit Congress did to extend the Patriot Act.

Last week, Congress voted to extend three provisions of the so-called U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T Act (aka Patriot Act) for another year. You can see how your Representative voted here: http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2010/roll067.xml But if you do that you'll think we've sent you to the wrong link. You'll see that the title on the bill is "Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act." You see, H.R. 3961 originally started with that title and subject, and it passed the House in November. Then, this past Wednesday, Majority Leader Harry Reid ripped the guts out of the bill and replaced it with the Patriot extensions. The Senate then passed that version of the bill and sent it back to the House, where it was approved Thursday night. Now, you may be asking, where's the link to the Senate roll call vote? Well, there isn't one. The bill passed by Unanimous Consent, which means a voice vote.

What the fuck, goddamn these people are fucking useless.

By: homunculus

homunculus — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 18:12:11 -0800

House Fails to Extend Patriot Act Spy Powers

By: QueerAngel28

QueerAngel28 — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 08:52:56 -0800

"I saw that on MetaFilter Tuesday!" I have noticed that Metafilter is most always a month or more ahead of the mainstream media...hell, sometimes years!