USA Patriot Act needs dismantling

Now that the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 has passed, the United States is fast-approaching the one-year anniversary of the Bush administration's assault on domestic civil liberties.

The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act, a grab bag of police-state schemes cobbled together by Attorney General John Ashcroft to capitalize on 9-11 fears, was signed into law by President Bush on Oct. 26, 2001.

It had been passed with almost no debate by the House of Representatives two days earlier, on a 357-66 vote. Of the 66 votes against the legislation, 62 came from Democrats, three from Republicans and one from Vermont Independent Bernie Sanders. Among the members of the House who rejected Ashcroft's grab for dramatically enhanced surveillance powers and the ability to punish legitimate political activism were two Wisconsin House members: Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, and Tom Barrett, D-Milwaukee.

In the Senate, only one member opposed the grotesquely misnamed "USA Patriot Act": Wisconsin Democrat Russ Feingold. At the time, Feingold described the legislation as a "truly breathtaking expansion of police power." Almost a year later, he says, "I would cast the same vote today, but even more confidently, as we see how law enforcement is beginning to use the new powers in the bill and how the Department of Justice has proceeded on a variety of fronts not directly addressed in the bill."

As the United States approaches the one-year anniversary, some components of the USA Patriot Act have already been challenged with success in the courts. But, for the most part, the breathtaking expansion of police power remains every bit as breathtaking and expansive as when it was enacted.