Uniting andUSA
Strengthening
PATRIOT ActAmerica
of 2001 by Providing
Appropriate
Tools
Required
to Intercept
and
Maryam
Pourrasi, Amy
Stewart,
Kristin Evans,
Michael Nocchiero
Obstruct Terrorism
Maryam Cover Slide
YYYY-YYYY
Policy Inception
2001-2002
H.R. 3162
Merger of House/Senate anti-terrorism bills
– S. 1510: Daschle + 25
– H.R. 2975: Sensenbrenner + 26
Sensenbrenner introduced in the House
10/23/01
– Cosponsor: Oxley
The Bill in a Nutshell
• Bolters ability to conduct criminal and
intelligence investigations
• Bar and expel terrorists from the U.S.
• Separate terrorists from their funding sources
• Punish acts of terrorism
• Address needs of 9/11 victims
Complementary Legislation
•
•
•
•
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978
Immigration and Nationality Act
Electronic Communications Privacy Act
Bank Secrecy Act of 1970
And the Yeas Have It
House Vote Outcome
Senate Vote Outcome
• 357 Yeas (211-R, 145-D, 1-I)
• 66 Nays (62-D, 3-R, 1-I)
• 9 Non-votes (5-R, 4-D)
• 98 Yeas
• 1 Nay (Feingold, D-WI)
• 1 Non-vote (Landrieu, D-LA)
H.R. 3162 became Public Law 107-56
President George W. Bush signs the Patriot
Act, Anti-Terrorism Legislation, in the East
Room Oct. 26, 2001.
White House photo by Eric Draper.
USA PATRIOT Act in Practice
• Target of investigation does not have to be an agent of
a foreign power; investigation cannot be based solely
upon activities protected by First Amendment
• Intelligence collected has to be relevant to terrorism
investigation; targets must only be linked to terrorism
• Increase in intelligence collection:
– pen register, trap and trace, permits roving wiretaps
– “sneak and peek” allowed
– courts authorize warrants for investigations outside
jurisdiction
• Federal National Security Letter (NSL) statutes
• No mention of Fourth Amendment rights
USA PATRIOT Act Consensus Unravels
2003-2008
Civil Liberty Issues Emerge
• May 2002: Jose Padilla, US citizen, detained as
“enemy combatant”
• August 2002: DoJ Inspector General Report
cited 762 illegal aliens detained; 0 charged
with terrorism related crimes
• November 2002: FBI requires Middle Eastern
refugee center release information on all Iraqiborn clients
Are American Publics Concerned with
Civil Liberties or Terrorism?
Americans’ Civil Liberty Concerns, 2003
80.00%
70.00%
66.90%
65.90%
57.80%
60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
32.20%
30.80%
23.60%
20.00%
10.00%
0.00%
Are you concerned that Has the U.S. violated
Has the Bush
fighting terrorism could individuals' freedom by administration gone too
restrict your freedom?
fighting terrorism?
far?
Source: Adapted from poll conducted for the Associated Press by International Communications Research in September 2003
Yes
No
Impact on Government
• Drastically increases information collection
and resources required for synthesis
• Significant strain on bureaucracy:
– Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)
– FBI: “hold until clear” policy
• Lack of internal consensus on boundaries of
PATRIOT Act
Impact on Federal Intelligence Agencies
• “Lowered… the wall traditionally separating
criminal investigation from foreign intelligence
gathering.”
• Shift from criminal investigation to intelligence
gathering
• Broader use of NSL statutes
“The FBI is becoming the new CIA.”
–FBI Intelligence Analyst
PATRIOT Act Implementation at FBI
FBI NSL Issuances
60,000
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
56,507
39,346
47,221
49,425
2005
2006
10,000
0
2003
2004
Source: March 2008 Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Report, A Review of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Use
of National Security Letters
Judicial Involvement
FISC Issuances of Tangible
Item Orders
18
• “Unless made in bad
faith”
• Bars suits against
information providers
• National Security vs.
Drugs
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
2007
2008
The Media “Investigates”
• New York Times reports warrantless
monitoring of international communications
in 2005
• President Bush admits to authorizing Terrorist
Surveillance Program
• “As long as nothing big happens, the media is
uninvolved.”
• “The media isn’t probing enough.”
The Legislative Debate
•
•
•
•
There hasn’t been another 9/11 vs. proof of effectiveness
Hearings in favor of both views through 2003
Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004
USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005
– 4 Republicans join Democrats in Senate filibuster
• April-June 2005: 16 different hearings on civil liberty
violations to Committees on Judiciary
• Reauthorized in 2006
• Congress has protected civil liberties by rejecting certain
legislation
Civil Liberty Interest Group Victories
• Muslim Community Association of Ann Arbor
v. Ashcroft
• John Doe, Inc et al. v. Mukasey et al.
“[NSL] effectiveness is disproportionately small compared
with the extent of… the invasion of privacy they represent.”
Deputy Director of the Center for National Security Studies
Sunset of the Bush Administration
• Terrorist Surveillance Program (TSP) expired in
2007
• Supreme Court and warrantless surveillance
program
• Protect America Act and FISA Amendments
Act of 2008 protect TSP
• Attorney General Mukasey certifies that
defendants’ actions were lawful
“The real question is,
‘Does the PATRIOT Act work?’
There doesn’t seem to be a public case
explaining the benefits of the tools the
PATRIOT Act provides.”
-Michelle Richardson, ACLU Lobbyist
Michael Cover Slide
YYYY-YYYY
References
Anonymous. FBI Interview. 8 Apr. 2010.
“A report to Congress in accordance with [sect] 357 of the Uniting and
Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept
and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001.” U.S. Department of Treasury, 26 Apr.
2002. Web. 7 March 2010.
“Chart comparing S.1692 and H.R. 3845.” Center for Democracy & Technology, 11
Nov. 2009. Web. 7 March 2010.
Doyle, Charles. “Terrorism Legislation: Uniting and Strengthening America by
Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism
(USA PATRIOT) Act of 2001.” CRS Report for Congress., 26 Oct. 2001. Web. 7
March 2010.
Henning, Anna, Elizabeth Bazan, Charles Doyle, Edward Liu. “Government
Collection of Private Information: Background and Issues Related to the USA
PATRIOT Act Reauthorization.” Congressional Research Service, 23 Dec. 2009.
Web. 7 March 2010.
Jost, Kenneth. “Civil Liberties Debates.” The CQ Researcher 13.37
(2003): 893-916. Web. 7 March 2010.
“Legislative History of P.L. 109-177: USA PATRIOT Improvement and
Reauthorization Act of 2005.” LexisNexis Academic & Library
Solutions. Web. 7 March 2010.
Robinson, Michelle. ACLU Interview. 1 Apr. 2010.
Uniting and Strengthening American by Providing Appropriate Tools
Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT Act).
Public Law 107-56. 26 Oct. 2001. Web. 1 March 2010.
VandeHei, Jim. “Bush Assails Democrats Over Patriot Act.”
Washington Post. 4 Jan. 2006. Web. 7 March 2010.