Under the radar, Obama pushes for Patriot Act renewal

[IndianaGreen]

12/18/2009 5:58:00 AM

Under the radar, Obama pushes for Patriot Act renewal

Feingold expresses frustration over Senate version

Richard Moore
Investigative Reporter

With key sections of the U.S. Patriot Act set to expire Dec. 31, the Obama administration - essentially tiptoeing through the corridors of Congress and using the raucous health care debate as cover - has quietly maneuvered for renewal of the controversial provisions, which he opposed as a senator.

Perhaps the most contentious measure is the business records provision, also known as the library provision, which allows the government to seek a court order forcing private entities such as banks, hospitals, and libraries to hand over "any tangible thing" - from library circulation records to medical records - officials think is relevant in a terrorist investigation.

This week, with time running out and no time to debate the bill on its merits, Democratic supporters of reauthorization in the Senate tried but fail to win House support to embed the provisions in a separate $626 billion Pentagon funding bill. The House has passed a bill with stronger civil liberties protections, but that version is not expected to survive.

Congress will now likely approve temporary extensions and deal with reauthorization early next year, giving opponents renewed hope they can still defeat or modify aspects of the national security language.

In early October, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 11-8 to send the measure to the Senate floor. The provisions would allow the government to continue to use roving wiretaps to monitor suspects, to obtain business records of national security targets, and to track and surveil so-called 'lone wolves' whose connection to a foreign government or terrorist group has not been established.

The legislation, co-sponsored by judiciary committee chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), would tweak the ability of the FBI to gain certain personal records of citizens, requiring the agency to show "specific facts" that requested records pertain to a terrorism investigation.

Core language remains

http://www.lakelandtimes.com/main.asp?SectionID=9&subsectionID=9&articleID=10649

[niyad]

1. sigh. . . still another disappointment.

[polpilot]

23. Escalation of illegal wars, capitulation to insurance corporations, Patriot Act enabler...

now remind me again..who won in '08.

[timeforpeace]

34. Hey, let's blame Bush! Or, it's not Obama's fault! Or, we're just ungovernable! It's our fault!

[MadHound]

2. What, you expected Obama and the Democrats to give up these nifty new unconstitutional

Powers once they took office? Oh no, they want to play with all these new toys.

[Andronex]

71. Obama doesn't control the security apparatus...

it controls him, you might as well give these absolute powers to organized crime. The corporate security state backed by the bankers now rule America, there is no going back.

[MadHound]

94. Umm, excuse me, but he certainly does control the security apparatus

He can shut down all of the alphabet agencies if he so wished, after all they all fall under the purview of the executive branch.

By the by, trying to portray Obama as a helpless pawn held in the grip of the MIC and corporations isn't doing much for his image, especially when that image is false.

[griffi94]

3. i wonder how this

will be spun. that he was really for this all along.

[Andronex]

73. Obama never promised change.

War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength.

[winyanstaz]

4. This alone proves we have been sold out.

The patriot act is unconstitutional and as a constitutional scholar Obama damned well knows it.

[BklnDem75]

5. Nothing in this article

backs up the part that you highlighted. It simply states a claim and expects people to accept that at face value. Yes his stance has changed over the years, but this article doesn't back up any claims he's pushing for anything.

[niyad]

9. and what is he doing to have this monstrous piece of legislative bs overturned?

[BklnDem75]

12. That has what to do with this article?

The author made a claim. If Obama's not pushing to overturn the Patriot Act, that makes what the author said true?

[tomp]

52. that's the point!

if he's not pushing with every ounce of presidential power to have this travesty of justice repealed, he's just another suck ass imperialist, AND he doesn't know shit about the constitution.

[BklnDem75]

58. So made up BS is ok?

There's not enough truth to work up enough outrage against Obama that you need bullshit added on top of that?

[tomp]

91. i couldn't care less about made up bullshit in this case.

read my post again. that is my stance on obama and the patriot act with or without this article.

[BklnDem75]

96. Ok...

Not sure why you needed to respond to my post to make that point. I'm not defending Obama's stance on this issue since I don't agree with him on this. I was strictly referring to the article's lack of information backing up it's claim.

[snagglepuss]

11. What do you mean "his stance has changed over the years"? His stance

has changed over MONTHS not years.

[BklnDem75]

16. You didn't actually read the article, did you?

"As an Illinois senator in 2005, Barack Obama opposed the core of these provisions when they were up for renewal then, saying he wanted to safeguard the country from terrorist attack but had concerns about seeking business records and the wiretapping language."

Unless his stance changed in 2005, I think that qualifies as over the years.

[snagglepuss]

28. I must of misinterpreted Obama's caimpaign stance that no one is above the law.

:sarcasm:

[dflprincess]

44. This must be another one of those areas where his position has "evolved"

though, I'd call it devolving.

[Jamastiene]

18. Will you still be saying that

when we see it renewed with some of the nastier civil liberties violations intact?

[BklnDem75]

26. Yes I will still be saying that.

The Patriot Act's renewal won't prove this article's claim. It makes the unsupported claim that Obama's working behind the scenes to get this act renewed. Are you saying this act has no chance of renewing without Obama's input?

[mkultra]

32. yeah, it blasts obama then goes on to talk about congress

no mention of obama's actions at all. Seems pretty strange.

[Maraya1969]

61. I know and I wrote down thread about another article that was on here that stretched the truth.

And call me a tea bagger if you want but after that dude tried to blow up an airplane yesterday I am more in favor of intercepting emails with certain language in them

[IndianaGreen]

76. And the PATRIOT Act did not protect us from Abdulmutallab's attempt to set jetliner on fire

As a matter of fact, the only thing PATRIOT has been successful at has been in gathering tons of information on constitutionally protected activities by US citizens.

The power you give a government to do the things that you want, will quickly be used by that government to do the things that you don't want.

[Nikki Stone1]

99. +1

.

[KansasVoter]

6. Some people here will try to justify it. Amazing!

[uponit7771]

36. There are no facts here, as usual people who dont like Obama takes anyone claims as facts

[SergeStorms]

63. I think what most people here.........

are upset about is Obama's campaign language, and his quite apparent about face on that language since his election. I don't think they're discouraged about a single issue, or a few issues, they're generally discouraged about the entire package as it was portrayed in his advertisements (campaign speeches). I think they feel that there's been a gigantic bait and switch pulled on them, and looking at the results of Obama's administration thus far, they could very possibly be correct.

People bought into the "Hope" and the "Change We Can Believe In". Not really the specifics of what that meant, but the general vibe that things would be VERY different if Barack Obama were elected. Well, things haven't been all that different, and I think what we're seeing is a general blow-back because things HAVEN'T changed. Corporate America still maintains the reins of power, The People (who prostrated themselves at the altar of Obama for change) are still being taken for granted and their will's ignored, and everything seems just as it was during the bitterly contested Bush years. There has been no relief.

Anyway, that's my take on your claim that it's the "usual people who don't like Obama". It' not that they don't like him. He's very likable, but they were expecting more. He PROMISED more, and hasn't delivered. :shrug: Your mileage may vary.

[bertman]

68. Excellent synopsis, SergeStorms.

[JDPriestly]

78. +1

[theFrankFactor]

64. Hmmm, What's Not to Like?

He's really been the voice of Progress and Change! We have accomplished so much in the face of tremendous disadvantages like... well, still... he's black and all! See? Hope and Change, yup, that's the ticket! Bolstered by our new President's leadership our weak Congressional lead... has been unified and maximized! Take note Republicans! This is how Democrats roll! After the disastrous reign of error and the resounding call of the People to change direction it should be clear that in his first year this newcomer has really set the tone for accountability and Constitutional fidelity.

IN FUCKING BIZZARRO WORLD!

[bertman]

69. For those of us who thought BIZZARRO WORLD was a result of BushCo, this administration

has been a bit of a disappointment. To say the least.

Tell it like it is, Frank!

[waiting for hope]

100. +1

[defendandprotect]

7. Yuck ... yuck . . . yuck . . .

[CrispyQ]

8. No surprise there.

File under "looking forward."

:grr:

[Dr.Phool]

10. We've become a Nation of Flaws.

[Hello_Kitty]

13. As I used to argue with RWers about these incursions on the Constitution:

"Are you willing to let a future Democratic administration have the same powers you are willing to give the current Republican one?" I'd always use President Hillary Clinton as the example and watch the blood drain out of their faces.

[Hydra]

14. And to think he could have just let this lapse

So much work keeping the Bush Admin's works in place.

[Jamastiene]

15. And the hits just keep on coming...

and they are all below the belt. It is beginning to look like we got a full fledged bait and switch.

[ProSense]

17. So what? The Patriot Act needs reforming.

People need to stop pretending that anyone in Congress is calling for it to be repealed. There are a number of Senators, including Feingold, who want the act reformed. While he is frustrated about the revision offered thus far, he is not calling for it to be repealed.

FEINGOLD, DURBIN PRESS FOR PATRIOT ACT REFORMS

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) are advocating reforms to the USA PATRIOT Act and related surveillance laws as part of the reauthorization of expiring provisions that the Senate will consider later this year. Feingold and Durbin have informed the Attorney General and the Chairmen of the Senate Judiciary and Intelligence Committees that they intend to once again seek reasonable reforms that will protect the constitutional rights of American citizens, while preserving the powers our government needs to fight terrorism. Feingold and Durbin want modifications to the USA PATRIOT Act similar to those outlined in the Security and Freedom Enhancement (SAFE) Act of 2005 and the National Security Letter (NSL) Reform Act of 2007, both of which had bipartisan support. While in the Senate, President Obama cosponsored both bills. The senators also urged that reforms to other surveillance laws, like the FISA Amendments Act, be considered.

“These PATRIOT Act sunsets give Congress the opportunity to finally get it right,” said Feingold, the lone Senator to vote against the original USA PATRIOT Act in 2001. “It has been eight years since the PATRIOT Act became law, and it is time to enact reasonable reforms to protect the rights and privacy of Americans while ensuring the government has the tools it needs to go after terrorist threats. Congress needs to fix our surveillance laws once and for all, from addressing the abuse of the National Security Letter authority that was identified by the Justice Department Inspector General to making sure that ‘sneak and peek’ search warrants can’t unjustly be used to allow secret searches of Americans’ homes.”

“As Congress begins discussion about the PATRIOT Act’s reauthorization, we should focus on protecting the constitutional rights of American citizens while preserving the powers our government needs to fight terrorism,” Durbin said. “The great challenge of our age is combating terrorism while remaining true to our Constitution. Incorporating aspects of the SAFE Act in this year’s reauthorization will help us to meet that challenge.”

In 2007 and 2008, the Department of Justice Inspector General issued reports reviewing the FBI’s use of National Security Letters (NSLs) that identified serious misuse and abuse. The USA PATRIOT Act granted the FBI unprecedented powers to obtain sensitive information about Americans without judicial review through the use of NSLs, and Congress failed to enact sufficient safeguards during the 2005 reauthorization process. The changes Feingold and Durbin are proposing would reform the way NSLs are issued and overseen, protect the private business records of innocent Americans, and ensure the courts are able to serve as a check on the executive branch’s surveillance authorities.

That's right Feingold is interested in fighting terrorism. Start calling him a sellout.

Statement of U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Russ Feingold on the Administration's Willingness to Consider PATRIOT Act Reforms

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Washington, D.C. – The Department of Justice has responded to a letter from U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Russ Feingold (D-WI), in which the Senators asked the Attorney General to consider bipartisan reforms to the USA PATRIOT Act that they have proposed, and which were supported by President Obama when he was in the Senate. In its response, the Department of Justice indicated willingness to consider reforms to the USA PATRIOT Act. Senators Feingold and Durbin, who plan to introduce legislation soon, released the following statement after receiving the response:

“We welcome the administration’s willingness to consider additional safeguards for surveillance powers that have been vastly expanded in recent years. Congress should revise the USA PATRIOT Act and related authorities to better protect the constitutional rights of American citizens, while preserving the powers of our government to fight terrorism. After the Inspector General reports documenting rampant misuse of National Security Letters, there can no longer be any doubt that granting overbroad authority leads to abuses. We must take this opportunity to get it right, once and for all. And we must be able to have a meaningful public debate so that the American people and their representatives in Congress can understand how these authorities have actually been used and make informed decisions about how they should be used in the future.”

[IndianaGreen]

20. PATRIOT Act needs repealing, not reforming

If a President McCain was doing this, you would be screaming in horror.

[ProSense]

21. Tell it to Feingold and Conyers. n/t

[JDPriestly]

79. +1

[ProSense]

19. Here is Conyers:

Another sell out pushing the Patriot Act to fight terrorism:

<...>

That is why we have introduced a new PATRIOT Act bill that ensures our government has the power it needs to fight terrorism and defend our nation, and at the same time better protects the constitutional rights and freedoms that Americans cherish. Our bill would tighten the standards for NSLs and for secret court orders compromising the records of US citizens, and includes a range of other protections to ensure these powers are available where needed, but cannot be abused. It would also require enhanced oversight and reporting to Congress, so that any misuse of these powers can be uncovered and fixed.

When he spoke before our founding documents at the National Archives last May, President Obama echoed Justice Brandies: "As a citizen, I know that we must never, ever, turn our back on enduring principles for expedience sake." He was exactly right, and we urge the President and all members of Congress to take that principle to heart as we work together to craft a revised PATRIOT Act of which all patriots can be proud.

[daa]

22. There will be no changes, illegal wiretapping rule,

Obama is even paying AT&T to do it.

[IndianaGreen]

25. And PATRIOT will be used against the antiwar movement, not Al-Qaeda

Like Bush, Obama needs the Al-Qaeda bogeyman to justify imperialist wars across the world. The last thing he needs is a robust and united antiwar movement in the United States to spoil his neoliberal foreign policy goals.

[TwilightGardener]

38. LOL. Delusions of grandeur.

[IndianaGreen]

40. NY Times: Officials Say U.S. Wiretaps Exceeded Law

Officials Say U.S. Wiretaps Exceeded Law

By ERIC LICHTBLAU and JAMES RISEN
Published: April 15, 2009

WASHINGTON — The National Security Agency intercepted private e-mail messages and phone calls of Americans in recent months on a scale that went beyond the broad legal limits established by Congress last year, government officials said in recent interviews.

<snip>

While the N.S.A.’s operations in recent months have come under examination, new details are also emerging about earlier domestic-surveillance activities, including the agency’s attempt to wiretap a member of Congress, without court approval, on an overseas trip, current and former intelligence officials said.

After a contentious three-year debate that was set off by the disclosure in 2005 of the program of wiretapping without warrants that President George W. Bush approved after the Sept. 11 attacks, Congress gave the N.S.A. broad new authority to collect, without court-approved warrants, vast streams of international phone and e-mail traffic as it passed through American telecommunications gateways. The targets of the eavesdropping had to be “reasonably believed” to be outside the United States. Under the new legislation, however, the N.S.A. still needed court approval to monitor the purely domestic communications of Americans who came under suspicion.

In recent weeks, the eavesdropping agency notified members of the Congressional intelligence committees that it had encountered operational and legal problems in complying with the new wiretapping law, Congressional officials said.

Officials would not discuss details of the overcollection problem because it involves classified intelligence-gathering techniques. But the issue appears focused in part on technical problems in the N.S.A.’s ability at times to distinguish between communications inside the United States and those overseas as it uses its access to American telecommunications companies’ fiber-optic lines and its own spy satellites to intercept millions of calls and e-mail messages.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/16/us/16nsa.html?_r=1

[TwilightGardener]

42. NSA overreached, Justice Dept. and Congress investigated.

Key quote: "The legal and operational problems surrounding the N.S.A.’s surveillance activities have come under scrutiny from the Obama administration, Congressional intelligence committees and a secret national security court, said the intelligence officials, who spoke only on the condition of anonymity because N.S.A. activities are classified." Nothing in this article backs up your claim that Obama is spying on anti-war citizens.

[QC]

24. How very, very hopeful and changealicious! n/t

[Vidar]

27. K&R.

[juno jones]

29. K&R! n/t

[ShortnFiery]

30. George W. Bush passed the RULER baton to President Obama ... May our Civil Rights R.I. P.?

American Crusade 2001+

[Wardoc]

31. Time for us to be expected to enjoy this "glorious victory" along with our "healthcare victory"...

Of course, the mantle may get crowded with the recent "Afghanistan victory" too.

And those of us who disagree, well, we just must not have read the bills/or are unrealistic/or just need to give them more more more money/votes and one day we can finally get some pay, they "promise"! :sarcasm:

[Clear Blue Sky]

33. Is this before or after he closes Gitmo?

[WinkyDink]

50. You mean, "moves Gitmo to Illinois."

[uponit7771]

35. Unrec the article doesn't back up any claims with facts, pleast post facts...

[IndianaGreen]

39. ACLU: Obama’s reversal on Patriot Act reform ‘a major travesty’

ACLU: Obama’s reversal on Patriot Act reform ‘a major travesty’

Key components in the USA Patriot Act are set to expire at the end of the year, but President Barack Obama is seeking to extend them, reversing his stark opposition in the past to the same provisions.

"The president's reversal on Patriot Act reform is a major travesty," said Michelle Richardson, Legislative Counsel for the leading civil rights group ACLU, in an interview with Raw Story. "There have been many, many abuses of power in the last four years."

These three main aspects in question allow the government to acquire private information about civilians through warrantless wiretapping of phone calls and emails, as well as seizure of records from credit reporting companies, banks, internet service providers and libraries. Another component includes the loosening of conditions under which an individual can be accused of providing "material support" to terrorists.

<snip>

"This was the most opportune time for the surveillance authorities to reverse course," Richardson told Raw Story. "If these programs continue, more abuses of power are absolutely inevitable -- there's no way around it. The level of secrecy granted by Congress is very troubling."

Obama has championed the continuation of all three provisions until at least 2013, a wish that has been granted by the Senate Judiciary Committee and two-thirds fulfilled by the House counterpart. (The House version slaps greater oversight and restrictions on acquiring personal records of non-US citizens.) While he has always been resolutely opposed to former President George W. Bush's vision of the Act, he has defended certain parts of it, and voted in 2006 to re-authorize an altered version.

"Overall, the Obama administration has made marginal improvements but is largely a continuation of the Bush administration with respect to civil liberties," Richardson told Raw Story, referring to the president's rising acquiescence to his predecessor's approach.

http://rawstory.com/2009/11/obamas-patriot-act-extensions-major-flip-earlier-stances/

[uponit7771]

41. This has NOTHING to do with the FACT that the article claims something without fact and people are..

...taking the claim at face value

[BklnDem75]

45. Didn't you know?

Lies are only ok when they're against Obama.

[Political Heretic]

48. Are you saying the ACLU is lying?

[BklnDem75]

51. I was unaware the ACLU wrote this article

Do they have anything more substantial than this article?

[Political Heretic]

80. Two posts up, oh observant one - or here:

http://rawstory.com/2009/11/obamas-patriot-act-extensions-major-flip-earlier-stances/

[BklnDem75]

81. At least that article provides actual support

to their claim unlike the one provided by the OP. If the raw story article was the OP, I'd have no problem with that since I disagreed with Obama's stance on telecom immunity last year. I will call out an article if it can't back up it's claims.

[Political Heretic]

89. Anything in the OP inaccurate? Nope.

[BklnDem75]

93. It makes a claim and doesn't back it up

Even the Raw Story article doesn't back up this article's claim. It makes an assumption based on well known knowledge. Obama's position on these provisions of the Patriot Act is no secret. Claiming he's 'tiptoeing through Congress' and secretly trying to push an agenda under our noses is pure fantasy. So is the OP article inaccurate? Very much so.

[Raine]

37. Screwed over yet again. nt

:-(

[Dragonfli]

43. I wonder if this is an "apologist approved" destruction of rights? Obama-heads=Bush-heads

There is nothing they will not approve of and I really see no difference in the Bush agenda and the "unwritten" new Democratic platform.

What our politicians claimed to represent to get elected is "unrealistic" now that they have gained power. Only the exact same policies as Bush's appear to be realistic in the eyes of our new leadership.

The only difference I see is that when Bush did it, we all fought against it because of our Democratic principles. Now that Obama is doing it, it is "pragmatic" in the eyes of the party faithful to abandon their Democratic principles and instead celebrate "a great democratic victory."

I never thought I would see the day when members of my once noble party cheered a poor tax (literally designed to squeeze money from the poor to pay corporations), the forced sale of a defective product that is designed to destroy any chance at the health reform we need, the continuation of illegal wiretapping, the destruction of the bill of rights and Habeas Corpus. As a bonus just for "playing the election game" we get our very own class of criminals that are completely above the laws of this nation as well as international law!
It is time to "move on" from rule of law, our constitution and any expectation that our citizens have a right to be healthy.

The apologists sicken me even more than the republicans dressing up as "Democrats" that they adore so.
They are hypocrites for hiding behind my party (the party of the working, the poor, and those that lack civil rights) and using that party directly against us - the workers, the poor, and those that lack civil rights.

I can't wait to see how the KoolAid dispensors instruct thier infiltrators here to sell this latest shit sandwich, or will you all forget the sales attempt and begin with the insults right off the bat?

[inna]

66. +1. I feel the same way.

:hi:

[amborin]

46. "Ice Castles" & Obama ignores ACLU complaints:

"If you don't have enough evidence to charge someone criminally but you think he's illegal, we can make him disappear." Those chilling words were spoken by James Pendergraph, then executive director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Office of State and Local Coordination, at a conference of police and sheriffs in August 2008. Also present was Amnesty International's Sarnata Reynolds, who wrote about the incident in the 2009 report "Jailed Without Justice" and said in an interview, "It was almost surreal being there, particularly being someone from an organization that has worked on disappearances for decades in other countries. I couldn't believe he would say it so boldly, as though it weren't anything wrong."

..Pendergraph knew that ICE could disappear people, because he knew ......the publicly listed field offices and detention sites, ICE is also confining people in 186 unlisted and unmarked subfield offices, many in suburban office parks or commercial spaces revealing no information about their ICE tenants--nary a sign, a marked car or even a US flag. (Presumably there is a flag at the Veterans Affairs Complex in Castle Point, New York, but no one would associate it with the Criminal Alien Program ICE is running out of Building 7.) Designed for confining individuals in transit, with no beds or showers, subfield offices are not subject to ICE Detention Standards. The subfield office network was mentioned in an October report by Dora Schriro, then special adviser to Janet Napolitano, secretary of Homeland Security, but no locations were provided.

I obtained a partial list of the subfield offices from an ICE officer and shared it with immigrant advocates in major human and civil rights organizations, whose reactions ranged from perplexity to outrage. Andrea Black, director of Detention Watch Network (DWN), said she was aware of some of the subfield offices but not that people were held there. ICE never provided DWN a list of their locations. "This points to an overall lack of transparency and even organization on the part of ICE," said Black. ICE says temporary facilities in field or subfield offices are used for 84 percent of all book-ins. There are twenty-four listed field offices. The 186 unlisted subfield offices tend to be where local police and sheriffs have formally or informally reached out to ICE. For instance, in 2007 North Carolina had 629,947 immigrants and at least six subfield offices, compared with Massachusetts, with 913,957 immigrants and one listed field office. Not surprisingly, before joining ICE Pendergraph, a sheriff, was the Joe Arpaio of North Carolina, his official bio stating that he "spearheaded the use of the 287(g) program," legislation that empowers local police to perform immigration law enforcement functions...."

snip

"
The Obama administration continued to ignore complaints about the LA subfield office known as B-18 until April 1, when Napolitano and Attorney General Eric Holder, as well as ICE officials, were named as defendants in a lawsuit filed by the ACLU and the National Immigration Law Center. "

snip

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100104/stevens/2

[Nikki Stone1]

102. + 1

.

[BigBearJohn]

47. We need to send this to Rachel Maddow's attention!!!!!!!!!

[WinkyDink]

49. So is the main difference that Obama isn't himself a psychopath?

[Christa]

53. K & Rec

Will it ever end?

[DisgustedInMN]

54. Next up for Obama...

.. privatizing Social Security.

[G_j]

55. K&R

[amborin]

86. Kick

[Algorem]

56. he wants to go down in history as just another dick.

[IthinkThereforeIAM]

57. "Water the Tree" tea baggers...

... are domestic terrorists: look at their implied threats to the president. For that reason, I am not too concerned about the extension of the Patriot Act. There are still a lot of Republican criminals that need to be apprehended.

[IndianaGreen]

59. but Obama is protecting Republican criminals from the law, such as John Yoo

of torture memo infamy.

[Maraya1969]

60. There was another article about this on here that said Habeas corpus was still ignored and it

said that torture was OK that but I looked it up and it was not true. It was just one case in an appellate court, (I think) that refused to try someone for their crime.

I know that I have not provided much information but I wanted to write this down fast because I don't think that or this article is accurate. I will try to find the other article.

[debbierlus]

62. One of those 'we can change it later'...turns to renewing it

Gross.

[treestar]

65. Why don't the progressives in the Senate threaten to filibuster?

In fact do they even need the filibuster? There are only 40 Republicans. Add Lieberman and the Blue Dogs and you still don't have 60.

[TheKentuckian]

101. Because the Republicans will if need be be act bipartisan on this,

wars, and privatizing education.

Its more than the bluedogs that will go for this and we all know it or it wouldn't have passed in the 1st place.

[femrap]

67. WTF is so hard about getting

a damn warrant? I want some judge knowing who is being investigated...so entities like Blackwater can't go off half-cocked.

[natrat]

70. wtf is so hard about understanding just how crooked they are ?

[femrap]

90. Beyond crooked....

and I guess even beyond corrupt. Wretchedly Evil starts getting close to what they are.

[scentopine]

72. We'll fix it later... -nt

[JDPriestly]

74. And a "terrorist" gets through airport security just in time.

How peachy! What a coincidence! Who would have ever thought!

I hope my sarcasm is misplaced. I hope we aren't reliving the Bush years.

What good does the Patriot Act do if an idiot like this "terrorist" on the plane gets through security? (Other than provide an excuse to snoop on ordinary people a la the STASI?)

[WatchWhatISay]

75. I'm just waiting for the color coded terror alerts to start up again

At strategically chosen moments.

[IndianaGreen]

77. Here is change you can believe in: Napolitano on TV showing off the new terra colour scheme

Isn't that better than having fat guy Tom Ridge doing it?

[Kltpzyxm]

82. Woohoo.

We're safe now. :bounce:

[bigwillq]

83. Hello.

Welcome to DU! :hi:

[David Zephyr]

84. Kick.

.

[shadesofgray]

85. Sickening, but not surprising.

[midnight armadillo]

87. But it's 11-dimensional chess, dammit!

You're just Not Smart Enough to comprehend Obama's mastery of the game, here, you see?

[shadesofgray]

88. LOL, I think he's playing 11-dimensional Twister!

[salguine]

92. I wish we could just recall his fucking ass. He's a goddamn disaster.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

95. Big Point: Obama is NO LONGER a United States Senator

Why is it that every piece of legislation in the Senate is somehow attributed to the Obama Administration? For some odd reason, every time the Senate does something or passes something that progressives disagree with, it's not the fault of the people in the Senate who actually vote on this stuff, but the fault of the Obama Administration which, in some murky and ill-defined manner, is "pushing" it through.

Why do I get the feeling that the Senate is using Obama as their "Get Out Of Jail Free Card"?

[TheKentuckian]

103. Well, that's fine but its not like he would veto it and I have little doubt

he'd send Joe to be 51 if needed.

Also, if it was something generally seen as good all the sudden the no longer Senator would be getting credit for his accomplishment.

No person is due all the credit but none of the blame, he's not a banker and thus not entittled to heads I win, tails you lose.

[calico1]

97. And there you have it...

I am so, SO disappinted...

I was dumb\ enough to believe that things would change..

[cherokeeprogressive]

98. Changalicious. Change-tastic. Change I find in my couch is worth more... n/t

[cornermouse]

104. What's Obama's excuse this time?

Bush pushed for and signed things because he is greedy and stupid. Obama's not stupid so what's his excuse?

[boppers]

105. A top item on DU is "under the radar".

Up next: Stealth by being so boring, and normal, as to not attract attention.

[uponit7771]

106. *******AGAIN, THIS ARTICLE POST CLAIMS AND NOT FACTS*******

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

107. Are those claims false?

Truth is not dependant on proving claims to be fact.

If I say E=mc^2, but lack the ability to prove it... does that make it false?
Of course not. Existence does not require proof.

The fact that elements of this horrid legislation are coming up to expire and Obama has not once informed the people or urged urge our representatives and senators to do the right thing is something that stands with or without someone citing a source. If Obama were a Progressive Leader, he would take the right stance and help ensure this act's demise. His lack of action on the subject is disturbing but no longer surprising.