Sununu Calls for Patriot Act Reform
WASHINGTON, Nov. 18 – Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.) is embroiled in a dispute over the renewal of the U.S. Patriot Act and has joined a bipartisan team of lawmakers who say they plan to block reauthorization of the law on the grounds that it infringes on too many civil liberties.
The clash ensued after the House and Senate met in conference last week to compromise on certain provisions of the Patriot Act set to expire at the end of the year. After the conference committee issued a report outlining the new compromises, Sununu and his colleagues in the Senate sent a letter to the House and Senate leadership expressing their concerns.
“If further changes are not made, we will work to stop this bill from becoming law,” wrote the senators.
Some Democrats in the Senate have threatened to filibuster the new act when it comes to the floor. The original Patriot Act, passed in the wake of September 11, expanded the government’s surveillance and prosecutorial powers.
Sununu and his colleagues are critical of certain provisions in the law that they say erode civil liberties, like the government’s unfettered access to sensitive business files and library records and the “sneak and peek warrants” that allow law enforcement agencies to conduct secret searches of people’s homes or businesses and inform them later.
Senators, along with Sununu, who are threatening to oppose the reauthorization of the law are Larry Craig (R-Idaho); Richard Durbin (D-Ill.); Russ Feingold (D-Wisc.); Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and Ken Salazar (D-Col.), a bi-partisan and ideologically diverse group.
They were joined Friday in a press conference by House members Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y); Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.); John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Connie Mack (R-Fla.). The group outlined their concerns and emphasized their desire to protect the nation from terrorism without encroaching upon the fundamental rights of Americans.
“Time and time again we have said we are focused on a few areas of a very large piece of legislation,” Sununu said at the press conference. “We think we can work out bipartisan compromise, reasonable compromise in each of these areas that doesn’t in any way undermine the ability of law enforcement to deal with a terrorist.”
Sununu also criticized the Justice Department for championing the Patriot Act and failing to properly advise President Bush.
“I have spoken with senior members of the Justice Department not weeks ago, not months ago, but as much as a year ago, raising some very specifically-crafted concerns,” said Sununu. “And there has been opportunity after opportunity to deal with these well in advance, and they have failed to do so. I don’t think a number of key advisors have served the president well, because this is important to protect civil liberties and still fight the war on terrorism.”
Sununu’s stance on the Patriot Act puts him at odds with his Senate colleague Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who is chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security and supports renewal of the law.
“The Patriot Act is one of those tools that is crucial to the war against terrorism while also containing a variety of safeguards to help protect individual rights,” Gregg said in a statement to the Union Leader. “We must be able to use the Patriot Act for what it is designed: collecting intelligence on terrorists.”
But Gregg said he is hopeful that a compromise can be reached.
“While I recognize that concerns have been raised regarding some of the provisions in the bill, I am hopeful that agreement can be reached on a number of the issues of concern before the bill comes before Congress for a final vote,” Gregg said. “Furthermore, mechanisms have been included in this conference report to ensure that further review and alteration of the bill can be considered within a set time frame.”
Although Sununu voted for the Patriot Act when it was first introduced in 2001, he said he now believes that certain provisions of the law have served their purpose and should be allowed to expire at the end of the year.
“It was necessary legislation given the importance of the time,” Sununu said in an interview. “That is why it was crafted carefully with sunsets.”
“Sunsets” are dates built into the Patriot Act which schedule certain provisions of the law to expire unless they are renewed by Congress.
Given the standards he and his colleagues wish to set, Sununu said, “I really don’t believe anyone can clearly describe a situation that would prevent law enforcement from doing its job effectively.”
The future of the debate remains uncertain as some of the Democrats in the Senate have threatened to filibuster the bill and Congress is facing not only the expiration of the law at the end of the year, but its imminent Thanksgiving recess.
“And yet here we are, effectively the day before everyone hopes to be heading home for the holiday,” said Sununu at Friday’s press conference. “This just shouldn’t be.”
