Plato the Lap Dog vs the Illuminati: 11/12/2005

USA PATRIOT Act (HR 3162)

Blocked by Senate !!! Link to article below

By Thomas Ferraro

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A group of U.S. senators, demanding increased protection of civil liberties, defied President George W. Bush on Friday by blocking renewal of the USA Patriot Act, a centerpiece of his war on terrorism.

A showdown bid to end debate and move to passage of renewal legislation fell eight votes short of the needed 60 in the 100-member Senate. The vote was 52-47, with a handful of Republicans joining most Democrats in a procedural roadblock.

Bush replied, "The senators who are filibustering the Patriot Act must stop their delaying tactics so that we are not without this critical law for even a single moment."

The Patriot Act was first passed after the September 11, 2001, attacks to expand the authority of the federal government on such fronts as information sharing, obtaining private records and conducting secret searches and roving wiretaps in its effort to track down suspected terrorists.

Approved earlier this week by the House of Representatives, the renewal legislation would make permanent 14 provisions set to expire on December 31, and extend three others for four years.

Senate Democratic and Republican foes of this legislation said despite increased judicial and congressional oversight contained in it, the government would still have too much power to pry into the lives of law-abiding Americans.

But they said expiring provisions could be swiftly renewed if lawmakers agreed to better balance national security with civil liberties.

A DANGEROUS GAME

"None of us wants it to expire, and those who threaten to let it expire rather than fix it are playing a dangerous game," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat.

Leahy and others again offered to renew expiring provisions as now written for three months to give both sides time to resolve differences. But congressional Republicans leaders rejected it, and so did the White House.

"The president's made it very clear that he is not interested in signing any short-term renewal," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan said. "The terrorist threats will not expire at the end of this year. They won't expire in three months. We need to move forward and pass this critical legislation.

The Senate showdown over the Patriot Act occurred as the U.S. Congress sought to wrap up its work for the year and go home for the holidays.

Fifty Republicans and two Democrats unsuccessfully voted to end debate on the renewal legislation; five Republicans, one independent and 41 Democrats blocked it.

With complaints by some conservatives as well as liberals, House and Senate negotiators agreed in a recent conference report to increase the protection of the civil liberties in the Patriot Act.

But Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, said, "In my view, and in the view of many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, the conference report still does not contain enough checks on the expanded powers."

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican, said he may bring the renewal measure up for a vote again in coming days, and predicted it would pass if "people really understand it."

Sen. John Sununu, a New Hampshire Republican, stood by his opposition, saying, "In my state, I think there's pretty strong support for protecting civil liberties during times of war and peace."

(Additional reporting by Tabassum Zakaria)

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So will the Bushman veto it? On US Radio today certain members of the senate stated the first Pat Act noted above was bad, but the second broke US law. If the President were to veto and go ahead with the Pat Act and then install the 2nd he would be guilty as well.
Buts Bush and his group of evildoers probably have something in store for the American public.
Since the start of this war on Terror, everytime a bill has needed to be pushed, a war to be fought or someone targetted or polls down a terror attack or at the very least a report of a terrorist attack has occured.

So I am willing to stake a bet that sometime before the Patriot Act runs out one of the following will occur.
1. Mutiple highly visable terror alerts will be sprayed on TV and Radio and then a dramatic attack on an ally on the war on terror. IE like in Spain or Brittain.
2. An attack small or large in size but at a highly visable and perhaps religious area in the United States.
3. The assassination of the leader of the United States of America, or one of his cabinet ...by whom? Blame on the will be layed on Muslims or a terror cell group.

Anything like this would be enough to scare the US people back into following the agenda, which of course is to continue to erode laws and freedoms from within while attacking and destroying freedoms outside by controlling other countries and there native goverments through military might or the even more powerful if you knew it, economic machine.

I hope I am wrong, greatly wrong. But I just can't see how this Administration which has so clearly demostration consistance deceit, outright arrogance and any lack of care or respect overall for the laws of any nation, including its own over a 6 year period would like the last 4 months see its men come under investigation, the war go completely south with talk of pulling out and then the one main tool for having complete control of its country go down the crapper.

As for the policies and agenda over his entire presidency, check out this website :