With Patriot III tour planned, Congress & lawsuits challenge Patriot Act

The Patriot Act faced serious challenges recently from Congress and the courts in what some are calling a turning point in the debate over the controversial law. Meanwhile, after running into attacks for Patriot II, Attorney General John Ashcroft plans a roadshow to gather support for Patriot III, legislation being prepared by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) that would further expand the federal government's powers. On Capitol Hill, the House voted 309 to 118 to withhold money from the government to use powers granted under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, the so-called "sneak-and-peek" provision. A total of 113 Republicans joined Democrats in the successful challenge to the controversial law. The vote essentially kept the federal government from using extra powers granted under the Patriot Act to conduct search an individuals' property without the person's knowledge or consent. It is unclear whether the Senate will act on a similar bill. Two legal challenges to the Patriot Act also sprang up in the last few days. The American Civil Liberties Union sued over the same sneak-and-peak provision. Several days later, the Center for Constitutional Rights, a social justice legal center, argued that the Patriot Act violated free-speech protections, in a suit filed in federal court. Lawyers for the Center argued that criminalizing "expert advice and assistance" to U.S.-identified terrorist organizations is unconstitutionally vague. Despite growing controversy over the expanded powers granted to government law enforcement agencies under the Patriot Act, Ashcroft plans to hit the road to expand Patriot's excesses. According to the New York Daily News, Ashcroft plans a 20-city, 10-day tour to drum up support for new legislation -- Patriot III -- that would grant the federal government new powers, including increasing prison sentences, expanding secret searches, interfering with Arab business transactions, and easing secret access to business records. Like the Patriot Act, the new legislation has been titled with care. Patriot III's official title is the Vital Interdiction of Criminal Terrorist Organizations Act, and the attorney general's roadshow is dubbed the "Victory Tour."
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