Patriot Act

President Bush called on Congress to “unite the hands of our law enforcement officials so they can fight and win the war against terror.” He gave consent to officials, as defined under the Patriot Act, to obtain subpoenas in time-sensitive terrorism investigations without first appealing to a judge or grand jury. This act denies bail to terror suspects and opens the federal death penalty to terror acts. The Act allows officials to access an individual’s communication on the computer, telephone and computers, and gain access to personal information including medical, financial, and educational history.

The Patriot Act spurs many debates over the extent of your rights as a citizen in exchange for national safety. While national security is a matter of importance, personal rights must never be given up in exchange for safety. To deny a citizen his natural acts is a terror act by the government. The American Civil Liberties Union argues that there are no rules governing the new powers. The Act denies citizens their fundamental rights and liberties. It is fundamentally an act of surveillance of citizens, and ultimately upsets the checks and balances in place to ensure the protection of our rights.

The controversial Act clearly violates the constitutional protection of citizens against unreasonable treatment; including, the violation of the first and fourth amendment. President Bush’s actions to implement such an act were unconstitutional by his allowing the FBI to search without a warrant or probable cause; easily obtain information about a person’s habits and affiliations; and keep secret the information collected that is not tied to a particular suspect and poses no risk to national security. The Patriot Act, though in response to a national tragedy, denies citizens of this country their given rights. In no scenario should a person’s supposed safety trump the natural rights of all citizens of this country.