WASHINGTON -- The House of Representatives, ignoring protests from civil liberties groups, renewed the USA Patriot Act on Thursday, to make permanent the government's unprecedented powers to investigate suspected terrorists. Sixteen provisions of the 2001 law, hastily enacted in response to the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington, are due to expire at the end of this year unless renewed by Congress. President Bush, who has repeatedly called on lawmakers to make the entire law permanent, commended lawmakers for approving the measure. The House reauthorized the act by 257-171 with several changes designed to increase judicial and political oversight of some of its most controversial provisions. In the Republican-controlled chamber, 44 Democrats supported the bill while 14 Republicans opposed it.
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House Votes to extend Patriot Act indefinitely
WASHINGTON -- The House voted to extend indefinitely the anti-terrorist USA Patriot Act, while limiting to 10 years two provisions of the law that have become linchpins in the ongoing congressional debate: allowing federal agents to use roving wiretaps and to search library and medical records.
Posted by Editor at July 22, 2005 07:29 AM
