Congress to VOTE on Extending Patriot Act

Congress to VOTE on Extending Patriot Act: "

A measure to extend surveillance provisions of the Patriot Act is
expected to pass despite concerns of many Democrats and some 'tea party'
Republicans about privacy issues.

Congress is expected to vote next week to extend expiring provisions of the
Patriot Act, which would allow the controversial anti-terrorism law to
continue four more years despite opposition from an unusual coalition of
Democrats and Republicans.

An earlier attempt to continue parts of the surveillance law suffered a surprise setback this year as 'tea party' freshmen and veteran conservatives joined with Democrats to defeat the bill before passing a temporary extension.

The
law, enacted after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, has been
criticized by civil libertarians as well as conservatives as an undue
overreach of governmental authority into private affairs.

At issue
are three segments of the law that have come under scrutiny over
concerns about invasion of privacy, including a provision that allows
authorities to investigate any records pertaining to terrorism suspects.

Two
other provisions up for renewal are the so-called roving wiretap, which
allows authorities to continue surveillance on suspects as they switch
phones or locations, and the 'lone wolf' provision, which allows
surveillance of foreigners without known ties to terrorist groups. All
procedures must be approved by court orders.

Republicans in the
House and Senate have pressed for a permanent extension of the expiring
provisions, which Democrats largely oppose. The Obama administration had sought a two-year extension.

Congressional
leaders reached an agreement late Thursday to vote on legislation that
would continue the expiring provisions through 2015. The Senate is
expected to take a test vote Monday, with House votes likely later in
the week before the scheduled expiration on Friday.

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