Sununu to Back Patriot Act Reforms
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Sununu will announce his support Wednesday for two bills that would restrict some of the controversial search and seizure powers granted by the Patriot Act of 2001.
The bills would, among other things, limit so-called John Doe wiretaps by forcing federal investigators to specify in a warrant either the person or place to be monitored.
The bills also would impose an expiration date on provisions in the Patriot Act that allow law enforcement agents to execute search warrants without notifying property owners until a “reasonable period” of time later – so-called sneak and peak warrants. Those powers – in addition to several others that civil libertarians have protested since the bill sped through Congress shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks – would expire at the end of 2005, giving Congress an opportunity to reevaluate their effectiveness.
“In the days and months following Sept. 11, 2001, Congress took important and necessary steps to provide law enforcement agencies with the necessary tools to fight terrorism at home and abroad,” Sununu said in a statement issued Tuesday. Then a member of the House, Sununu supported the Patriot Act when it passed..
“While this bill was designed to help protect our nation from future acts of terrorism, we must always work to balance our desire for security with the rights of individuals to due process,” Sununu said.
The bills, both of which Sununu has co-sponsored, also would roll back the government’s authority to force companies to turn over business records and would require the government to prove it has reason to believe there is a terrorist connection.
Other powers granted by the Patriot Act that the new bills would cause to expire include the right of judges to issue warrants for properties outside their jurisdictions, the expanded ability of law enforcement to get information from Internet providers, the removal of some privacy protections from educational records and a broad definition of “domestic terrorism” that some say could be interpreted as including civil disobedience.
Both bills enjoy bipartisan support. Both the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Conservative Union back the proposals.
White House officials could not be immediately reached for comment late yesterday, but the administration has historically defended the Patriot Act against those who have tried to weaken it.
Attorney General John Ashcroft last month embarked on a speaking tour of the country to defend the Patriot Act.
