The Patriot Act was passed after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. This act allows the government and or federal officials to track and intercept our communications with one another. It also makes new crimes, punishments, and new procedures that we use for terrorists. The history of the Patriot Act, the abuse of our civil liberties, and the current issues with the act lead Americans to feel like they cannot trust their government.
We have the Patriot Act because on September 11, 2001 the United States was brutally attacked in a very violent way. Almost 3,000 Americans lost their live in only a few short hours. Congress decided to pass the USA PATRIOT Act. This act broadens what we consider to be terrorism, made the sentences for …show more content…
A current court case is Doe v. Holder. This case challenges the constitutionality of someone authorizing the FBI to look at everyone’s records in secret without judicial supervision, including internet service providers and phone companies. The Patriot Act permitted the FBI to send national security letters to phone and internet companies along with libraries, banks, and many other businesses asking for the customer’s private information. On September 28, 2004, Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York took down the national security letter statute. Marrero said that the FBI’s application required a “compulsory secret, and was not a reviewable product of the information” because it violated the fourth …show more content…
On May 26, 2011, President Barack Obama signed a bill that reauthorized some parts of the Patriot Act. This bill called for a four year renewal of some provisions of the surveillance issues. Even though most of the Patriot Act is still in the law, there are some parts that congress has to reauthorize periodically or they will “expire.” One of these things is the wire taps. This is the ability of law enforcements to look at phones to track targets without consulting a judge first. When the Patriot Act passed it gave law enforcements more ability to have more surveillance powers to help prevent more terrorist incidents. Some civil rights advocates argue that this is a violation of Americans privacy rights. Liberal Democrats and Tea Party Republicans have tried to amend the Patriot Act to help protect Americans from having their privacy rights violated. In late 2009, the “expiring provisions” of this act were up for re-authorization. President Obama signed the re-authorization even though there was a delayed vote and many months of Congregational
We have the Patriot Act because on September 11, 2001 the United States was brutally attacked in a very violent way. Almost 3,000 Americans lost their live in only a few short hours. Congress decided to pass the USA PATRIOT Act. This act broadens what we consider to be terrorism, made the sentences for …show more content…
A current court case is Doe v. Holder. This case challenges the constitutionality of someone authorizing the FBI to look at everyone’s records in secret without judicial supervision, including internet service providers and phone companies. The Patriot Act permitted the FBI to send national security letters to phone and internet companies along with libraries, banks, and many other businesses asking for the customer’s private information. On September 28, 2004, Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York took down the national security letter statute. Marrero said that the FBI’s application required a “compulsory secret, and was not a reviewable product of the information” because it violated the fourth …show more content…
On May 26, 2011, President Barack Obama signed a bill that reauthorized some parts of the Patriot Act. This bill called for a four year renewal of some provisions of the surveillance issues. Even though most of the Patriot Act is still in the law, there are some parts that congress has to reauthorize periodically or they will “expire.” One of these things is the wire taps. This is the ability of law enforcements to look at phones to track targets without consulting a judge first. When the Patriot Act passed it gave law enforcements more ability to have more surveillance powers to help prevent more terrorist incidents. Some civil rights advocates argue that this is a violation of Americans privacy rights. Liberal Democrats and Tea Party Republicans have tried to amend the Patriot Act to help protect Americans from having their privacy rights violated. In late 2009, the “expiring provisions” of this act were up for re-authorization. President Obama signed the re-authorization even though there was a delayed vote and many months of Congregational