Will it ever die?

February 15, 2011 9:24 AM

The Patriot Act lives! The US House of Representatives has agreed to extend some of surveillance powers granted by the 2001 Patriot Act after the 9/11 attacks. In a 275-144 vote, the chamber voted to extend until December provisions on wiretaps, access to business records and surveillance of terror suspects.
posted by Philipschall (39 comments total)

Way to go Tea Patriots...
posted by odinsdream at 9:26 AM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

I would like to say here that my account was hijacked 4 or 5 years ago; any and all comments made by "me" during that time was actually a commie imposter.

And, contrary to what these people think, patriot doesn't mean "scared little pussy that needs to beat every bush and peer up every asshole to keep us safe."
posted by Benny Andajetz at 9:30 AM on February 15, 2011 [8 favorites]

The day when I agree with Dana freaking motherloving Rohrabacher and disagree with Barack Obama. Bizarro World has arrived!
posted by blucevalo at 9:31 AM on February 15, 2011 [3 favorites]

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.
posted by brand-gnu at 9:37 AM on February 15, 2011 [11 favorites]

Careful what you say.
posted by punkfloyd at 9:39 AM on February 15, 2011

Sorry - how exactly is this news?
posted by sporb at 9:45 AM on February 15, 2011

Will it ever die?

Sure, put Patriot Act approved warrantless wiretaps on member of the House and Congress and watch how fast their minds change.
posted by quin at 9:52 AM on February 15, 2011 [3 favorites]

Way to go Tea Patriots...

In case you were serious, they opposed the bill.
posted by nasreddin at 9:53 AM on February 15, 2011 [2 favorites]

This would never happen with a Democrat in the White House.
posted by rocket88 at 9:54 AM on February 15, 2011 [10 favorites]

This law has been in effect since I was 12. WTF.
posted by thsmchnekllsfascists at 9:55 AM on February 15, 2011 [2 favorites]

Took Egyptians 30 years to revolt against their "Emergency Laws" Will it take us 20 more? Will we ever?
posted by symbioid at 10:00 AM on February 15, 2011 [4 favorites]

We need to print up "Read Something, Debate Something" posters for Congress.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 10:02 AM on February 15, 2011 [2 favorites]

Probably a better strategy would be to stop making enemies around the world.
posted by Daddy-O at 10:05 AM on February 15, 2011 [3 favorites]

Took Egyptians 30 years to revolt against their "Emergency Laws" Will it take us 20 more? Will we ever?

Small sign of that so far. The 1933 ones are still in effect, so far as I know.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 10:08 AM on February 15, 2011 [2 favorites]

Here's the roll call for today's vote, it's quite similar to the last time (the guy whose campaign I worked on voted for it. Boo.)

And interestingly there was a motion to recommit introduced by the Democrats:

No Constitutional shortcuts. When investigating American citizens, the government must comply with the Constitution, even in national security investigations

Challenging unconstitutional action. If a citizen challenges the government’s use of PATRIOT Act power in a court of law, the case must be expedited to ensure the individual’s rights are upheld.

The amendment was supported by all Democrats and 2 Republicans, Walter Jones and Ron Paul. That was not enough for passage.
posted by ofthestrait at 10:13 AM on February 15, 2011 [3 favorites]

The US House of Representatives has agreed to extend some of surveillance powers granted by the 2001 Patriot Act after the 9/11 attacks.

So what hasn't been extended? Because if the bulk of the PATRIOT act is now just these three powers, this is actually a pretty drastic improvement.
posted by Amanojaku at 10:18 AM on February 15, 2011

Text of the bill, HR 514
posted by ofthestrait at 10:21 AM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

In case you were serious, they opposed the bill.

In case you were serious, 44 of 52 members of the Tea Party Caucus voted to extend the act's domestic spying provisions.
posted by Astro Zombie at 10:21 AM on February 15, 2011 [17 favorites]

GRAR.
posted by Mister Fabulous at 10:23 AM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

Will it ever die?

From their cold, dead hands maybe.
posted by Webbster at 10:32 AM on February 15, 2011

Fucking fuckers.
posted by Jacqueline at 10:43 AM on February 15, 2011 [7 favorites]

Will it ever die?

If and when it actually begins to visibly affect large chunks of the American population, rather than a few feared and disliked marginal groups and kept off the television when it does - at that point, and only that point, will we see serious resistance to this bill.
posted by AdamCSnider at 11:23 AM on February 15, 2011 [3 favorites]

This isn't unexpected, but my ongoing fury about this bill kinda is, at least to me. It is an absolute insult to the U.S. Constitution that this bill was passed in the first place, much less that it continues to be extended and very few people seem to even notice, much less care.
posted by bearwife at 12:20 PM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

Fucking fuckers.

Damn fucking right. This was really awful and I'm sorry to see that we're still in the same situation, and that the margins haven't changed.

I wrote letters, went through online campaigns, etc, but that's just as ineffective as it ever was.
posted by fake at 12:40 PM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

If the Tea Party was opposed to it, it sure didn't show up in the Tea Party Caucus's votes.
posted by mccarty.tim at 1:01 PM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

If you're not doing anything wrong, you don't have anything to worry about! hamburger

But stay away from that website that exposes government wrongdoing - you know the one, don't make me say it - or that same government will have to get all "patriotic" on you and yoink your laptop, phone and usb drive the next time you travel. Move along, citizen.

Seriously, this shit makes me so sad. WTF, America?
posted by Marla Singer at 1:11 PM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

I don't usually bother to write to politicians anymore but I just emailed my Senator. I figure he owes me for voting for him instead of NOTA in the last election. :) It was the first time I'd ever compromised my principles to vote for the "lesser of two evils" candidate. I hope he doesn't make me regret it!
posted by Jacqueline at 1:24 PM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

Why can't they call by its real name, the Obviously Regressive Weenies Elected Lucratively Lately, or the ORWELL act?
posted by telstar at 1:52 PM on February 15, 2011 [3 favorites]

Phew, that was close! Right after the house failed the vote last week, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano warned us that the terror threat level was near 9/11 levels.

Saved in the nick of time! How exciting!
posted by formless at 1:58 PM on February 15, 2011 [4 favorites]

Phew, that was close! Right after the house failed the vote last week, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano warned us that the terror threat level was near 9/11 levels.

Rumor was the terror level was up near Grizzly Bear with a chance of Colbert.
posted by Mister Fabulous at 2:11 PM on February 15, 2011 [1 favorite]

Nice to know this representative republic thing works, and that the people's will is reflected by the government. My faith in the system is unshakeable, and deeply out of touch with reality.
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 2:18 PM on February 15, 2011 [2 favorites]

Lieberman is saying that Senate Dems are considering a 3-month extension.
posted by Benny Andajetz at 2:22 PM on February 15, 2011

The correct title is USA PATRIOT Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001). Please make a note of it.
posted by kirkaracha at 7:53 PM on February 15, 2011 [2 favorites]

Diff between those voting against the extension in the two votes; strikeout means the "Nay" vote was there in the first vote but gone in the second, bold means a new "No" in the second vote that wasn't there before:

Bass (CA) (D) Nay → Not Voting
Brown (FL) (D) Nay → Aye
Clarke (NY) (D) Nay → Not Voting
Deutch (FL) (D) Nay → Aye
Frank (MA) (D) Nay → Not Voting
Gutierrez (IL) (D) Not Voting → No
Hanna (NY) (R) Not Voting → No
Hastings (FL) (D) Yea → No
Johnson (GA) (D) Nay → Not Voting
Larsen (WA) (D) Yea → No
Rush (IL) (D) Nay → Not Voting
Speier (CA) (D) Not Voting → No
Tierney (MA) (D) Nay → Not Voting
Woolsey (CA) (D) Nay → Not Voting

So I guess that the handful of Tea Partiers who tipped the balance in the first vote held their ground. (And all of the Tea Partiers who voted in favor of the extension in the first vote held their ground too or didn't vote this time.)
posted by XMLicious at 12:58 AM on February 16, 2011 [2 favorites]

So you're telling me that the Tea Partiers are the less-fascist option in the US Congress?

Dear lord...
posted by pompomtom at 1:16 AM on February 16, 2011 [1 favorite]

So you're telling me that the Tea Partiers are the less-fascist option in the US Congress?

Not sure where you're getting that impression from; most of the Tea Partiers either voted in favor of extending the Patriot Act both times or voted in favor the first time and just didn't vote the second time when extending it was a sure thing.
posted by XMLicious at 1:28 AM on February 16, 2011 [1 favorite]

Thank you for the re-summary. I'm on hols, and it shows.

Glad the world is just its usual terrible, and not a new, confusing, terrible.
posted by pompomtom at 4:48 AM on February 16, 2011

Peter King (R-NY) reintroduces WikiLeaks prosecution bill (text)
posted by jeffburdges at 12:16 PM on February 17, 2011

Okay, to let my USianism all hang out - pompomtom, when you used "hols" in that sentence there, were you using it in the sense given on Urban Dictionary: short for "holidays"? Or is it also short for some sort of prescription medicine or other drug, which it almost sounds like it could mean?
posted by XMLicious at 3:19 AM on February 27, 2011