Question

What is the USA PATRIOT Act, and what are the four traditional tools of surveillance expanded with the Act?

How has the Reauthorized USA PATRIOT ACT of 2006 changed the legal definitions of terrorism and responded to critiques against the original law?

Answer 1

ACT:

The USA PATRIOT Act is an Act of Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001. With its ten-letter abbreviation (USA PATRIOT) expanded, the full title is “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001”. The abbreviation, as well as the full title, have been attributed to Chris Cylke, a former staffer on the House Judiciary Committee.

PATRIOT gave sweeping new powers to both domestic law enforcement and international intelligence agencies and eliminated the checks and balances that previously gave courts the opportunity to ensure that such powers were not abused. Most of these checks and balances were put into place after previous misuse of surveillance powers by these agencies.

The following are the four tools of surveillance expanded with the act :

1.wiretaps

2.search warrants

3.pen/trap orders

4.subpoenas.

Reauthorised Patriot act:

Many provisions of the act were to sunset beginning December 31, 2005, approximately four years after its passage. In the months preceding the sunset date, supporters of the act pushed to make its sun-setting provisions permanent, while critics sought to revise various sections to enhance civil liberty protections. In July 2005, the U.S. Senate passed a reauthorization bill with substantial changes to several sections of the act, while the House reauthorization bill kept most of the act's original language. The two bills were then reconciled in a conference committee that was criticized by Senators from both the Republican and Democratic parties for ignoring civil liberty concerns.