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A friend tells me he was watching part of an episode of 'Law and Order' last evening. Does not remember which one of the many L&E shows. I no longer watch conventional television, so I need help finding this. The plot involves two detectives stubling upon prisoners held secretly in a state prison. Detectives found out because of the differance between official head count and number of meals served. My friend says the great quote from the show; "Ever read the Patriot Act ?" "I read the original-1984." Help me find this episode.

Since my first deployment to South East Asia, I have seen this great country gradually slip away. America has gone from being the world's greatest creditor nation, standing as a beacon of hope for the world, to the world's biggest debtor nation, where 42 million Americans rely on food stamps to survive...it is happening right now in front of us. Like it or not, America is a Totalitarian Dictatorship, and this article will help you understand why. After the Oklahoma City Bombing, my job required that I attend a two-day briefing on counter terrorism. At that meeting, several people from...

An old adage reads, "If it quacks like a duck, then it's probably a duck." The push by the Obama Administration to progressively strip Americans of basic liberties in the pursuit of political objectives has now taken on more draconian overtones, and no one seems to have noticed. While the media quibbles over Romney versus Gingrich, the Occupy movement, and other diversions, President Obama continues to undermine law and order, dismantling the US Constitution piece by piece. When public officials seek to limit freedom, it can be concluded that these officials want to rule instead of govern. Cloaking seizures of...

Remember that debate between Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich, where Mr. Gingrich suggested we should expand and strengthen the Patriot Act in the name of protecting US citizens from terrorists? Mr. Gingrich indicated that there exists a line between criminal law and the war on terror, and that we need not worry the government will overstep its bounds. While Americans enjoy the Thanksgiving weekend and join the annual running of the bulls celebration at malls and retail outlets, something sinister is taking place in Congress – and it should scare the hell out of you. If the President and...

Presidential hopeful Ron Paul says his rivals’ militant stances on “the defense of liberty” would make it difficult for him to support any of them for president should he not get the Republican nomination, because their positions would lead to bigger government. But the Texas congressman also told Fox News’ Neal Cavuto Wednesday that despite these concerns, he probably would not run as a third-party candidate. “I would have trouble with what I heard last night because it is almost opposite of the defense of liberty that I’m talking about,” Paul told Cavuto, referring to Tuesday night’s presidential debate. “I...

"I'm not supposed to know anything about foreign policy," said Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain the other day after fumbling a question about President Obama's actions in Libya. "Because you run for president [people say] you need to have the answer. No, you don't! No, you don't!" His dearth of knowledge and interest in foreign policy was on full display in last night's GOP debate.... ...On the Patriot Act, Mr. Cain was even more hazy. "If there are some areas of the Patriot Act that we need to refine, I'm all for that. But I do not believe we ought...

The Republican candidates for president outlined their visions for fighting terrorism and keeping the country safe during a CNN debate Tuesday held just down the street from the White House they hope to occupy. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, the latest GOP frontrunner in this volatile primary season, sparred with libertarian-leaning Texas Rep. Ron Paul over the Patriot Act as the debate opened, with Gingrich calling for an even more robust version of the law. "I would look at strengthening it because the dangers that are posed are so great," Gingrich said. Paul, who has been sharply critical of the...

This is as plain and concise as this has ever been stated. Please watch this video from the 10/26/11 show.

The New York Times is suing the U.S. government for refusing to divulge how its law enforcement interprets the Patriot Act. After a series of Freedom of Information requests were declined to reveal the classified interpretation of the Patriot Act — a description that Senators Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) and Mark Udall (D-Colorado) described as “deeply disturbing” — the newspaper sought to battle it out in the courts. Some months ago, it was found that the Patriot Act was being interpreted by government departments in a way to aid their ongoing investigations, leading to calls that there was a “classified” element...

Since this spring’s blink-and-you-missed-it debate over reauthorization of several controversial provisions of the Patriot Act, Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Mark Udall (D-CO) have been complaining to anyone who’d listen about a “Secret Patriot Act“—an interpretation of one of the law’s provisions by the classified Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court granting surveillance powers exceeding those an ordinary person would understand to be conferred from the text of the statute itself. As I argued at the time, there is an enormous amount of strong circumstantial evidence suggesting that this referred to a “sensitive collection program” involving cell phone location tracking—potentially on a...

Security Tells Woman Isulin Vial Was An Explosives Risk. Aaron Nieman is frustrated, after his pregnant wife's insulin and ice packs were confiscated by TSA screeners at Denver International Airport on Thursday afternoon. The couple has traveled around the world with her supplies and have never encountered any troubles before. "It made me feel upset and made me feel somewhat helpless," he said. His wife is traveling alone to a baby shower in Phoenix. She asked us not to use her name for fear of security and retaliation for speaking out.

The Colorado prosecution of a woman accused of a mortgage scam will test whether the government can punish you for refusing to disclose your encryption passphrase. The Obama administration has asked a federal judge to order the defendant, Ramona Fricosu, to decrypt an encrypted laptop that police found in her bedroom during a raid of her home. Because Fricosu has opposed the proposal, this could turn into a precedent-setting case. No U.S. appeals court appears to have ruled on whether such an order would be legal or not under the U.S. Constitution's Fifth Amendment, which broadly protects Americans' right to...

LONDON — At the Office 365 launch, Gordon Frazer, managing director of Microsoft UK, gave the first admission that cloud data — regardless of where it is in the world — is not protected against the USA PATRIOT Act.It was honestly music to my ears. After a year of researching the Patriot Act’s breadth and ability to access data held within protected EU boundaries, Microsoft finally and openly admitted it.The question put forward: “Can Microsoft guarantee that EU-stored data, held in EU based datacenters, will not leave the European Economic Area under any circumstances — even under a request by...

The U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee is weighing fresh concerns about the sweeping nature of domestic spying using one controversial section of the Patriot Act. This particular part of that law is notable because it has been divisive for years — and because during those years President Obama has quietly moved from being a Senator skeptical of the provisions to being an enthusiastic spy chief whose Administration embraces them. Last Tuesday the committee met to consider the worries of some members, mostly Democrats, who say the Justice Department has drafted a breathtakingly broad interpretation of Section 215 of the Patriot Act....

Sometimes big deals get little play, unless you follow social media. It seems some federal agents last week broke down a California man's door and removed him and his three children, ages 3, 7 and 11. According to News10/KXTV in Stockton, Calif., a SWAT team around 6 a.m. Tuesday broke down Kenneth Wright's door, removed him and his children, and searched the house. As it turns out, according to the report, they were from the U.S. Department of Education attempting to collect on his wife's defaulted student loan. "The U.S. Department of Education issued the search and called in the...

Last week Mike Riggs noted Ron Wyden's warnings about the Obama administration's "secret interpretation" of the PATRIOT Act, which he said undermines democracy, the rule of law, and ultimately the public's support for anti-terrorism efforts. Here is some of what Wyden, an Oregon Democrat who serves on the Senate Intelligence Committee, had to say on the subject in a floor speech on Thursday: When the American people find out how their government has secretly interpreted the Patriot Act, they will be stunned and they will be angry. And they will be asking senators, "Did you know what this law actually...

In this episode of the Conscience of Kansas radio program we talk about the renewal of the Patriot Act and Obama's position on the law in the past. I talk about the GOP's economic plan. Next we talk about the organization Gender Spectrum, the Gender War in our schools and the push for institutionalized gender blending. Next, we talk about the tornados in Joplin Missouri. We invite you to listen and comment on the show!

In this episode of the Conscience of Kansas radio program we talk about the renewal of the Patriot Act and Obama's position on the law in the past. I talk about the GOP's economic plan. Next we talk about the organization Gender Spectrum, the Gender War in our schools and the push for institutionalized gender blending. Next, we talk about the tornados in Joplin Missouri. We invite you to listen and comment on the show!

Rep. Tom Graves (R-Ga.) is questioning President Obama's use of an autopen in signing an extension of the Patriot Act. In a letter Friday, Graves asks Obama to confirm that he saw the law prior to its autopen signing. "Mr. President, I write to request your confirmation that S. 990, as passed by Congress, was presented to you prior to the autopen signing, as well as a detailed, written explanation of your Constitutional authority to assign a surrogate the responsibility of signing bills passed into law," Graves wrote. Obama signed the bill into law late Thursday night. The autopen was...

The NRA sold out the Second Amendment during the Patriot Act fight, criticizing Senator Rand Paul's amendment to exempt gun purchases from search provisions of the Patriot Act in e-mails to Congress while sitting on information showing the need for Paul's amendment. The information shows that the FBI and the federal government's Joint Terrorism Task Force have already begun trolling the records of law-abiding gun owners, using the excuse of terrorism surveillance. The NRA published information May 27 — the day after the vote — indicating that Rand Paul (R-Ky.) was right in warning that Patriot Act provisions threatened law-abiding...

Rep. Graves questions Obama's autopen signing of Patriot Act By Daniel Strauss - 05/27/11 11:17 AM ET Rep. Tom Graves (R-Ga.) is questioning President Obama's use of an autopen in signing an extension of the Patriot Act. In a letter Friday, Graves asks Obama to confirm that he saw the law prior to its autopen signing. "Mr. President, I write to request your confirmation that S. 990, as passed by Congress, was presented to you prior to the autopen signing, as well as a detailed, written explanation of your Constitutional authority to assign a surrogate the responsibility of signing bills...

Just found the complete breakdown here.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congress on Thursday passed a four-year extension of post-Sept. 11 powers to search records and conduct roving wiretaps in pursuit of terrorists. Votes taken in rapid succession in the Senate and House came after lawmakers rejected attempts to temper the law enforcement powers to ensure that individual liberties are not abused. Following the 250-153 evening vote in the House, the legislation to renew three terrorism-fighting authorities headed for the president's signature with only hours to go before the provisions expire at midnight. With Obama currently in France, the White House said the president would use an autopen...

Tonight, I cast an affirmative vote in the House to continue three measures which uphold our national security and are in place to protect American citizens against those seeking to do us harm. I urge you to click on the link and read about the Constitutionality of these provisions compiled by my friend and colleague, Rep. Steve King (IA-05), a member of the Judiciary Committee.

Catherine Herridge is reporting that this bill was debated by both Senate and House today for only 5 hours, then voted into law. Obama is out of the country so it will be signed into law by the Auto-Pen... It contains widening of wire taps, something called a Lone Wolf Provision and clears the way for federal LE to obtain forms and police records to determine who and how many own guns. Hope all the Law-And-Order-At-Any-Cost Conservatives are happy tonight! An unconstitutional piece of legislation, barely debated, then voted into law and not even signed by the president, but a...

A fight over the extension of the Patriot Act played out on the Senate floor yesterday--and things got personal for Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.). Paul chose to rise on the Senate floor in front of a national audience to give Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) a real piece of his mind. "I rise in response to a scurrilous accusation," Paul said. "I've been accused of wanting to allow terrorists to have weapons to attack America. To be attacked of such a belief when I'm here to discuss and debate the constitutionality of the Patriot Act is offensive. I find it...

Washington (CNN)-In a rare public display of political and personal acrimony, freshman Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky squared off Wednesday with the powerful Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Tempers flared on the Senate floor over how many amendments Paul could offer to a measure extending the main anti-terrorism surveillance law enacted after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. Key provisions of that law – the Patriot Act - are due to expire Friday, and the dispute between the two senators threatens to cause a brief lapse of the law. If that happens "it could have...

Crucial votes on extending the USA Patriot Act could happen as soon as Wednesday in both houses of Congress. The current extension of the act, passed three months ago, expires May 27. The act originally was passed by Congress in the wake of the 9/11 attacks almost 10 years ago. It greatly expanded government surveillance powers. This is crucial because it involves’ Americans Fourth Amendment “right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.” Without that right, government has the ability to, among other things, spy on citizens at will....

As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received a warm welcome from a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, freshman Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) skipped out on the speech, staging what appeared to be a silent protest of America’s foreign aid to Israel. As senators gathered on the Senate floor before the address, Paul was spotted speaking to his staffers toward the back of the chamber. As the Senate procession across the Capitol began, the tea-party-backed senator quietly walked to his desk, sat down and began shuffling through papers and newspapers.

Gun Owners of America worked with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) on legislation to exempt 4473’s (the form all buyers fill out when a gun is purchased from a licensed dealer) from that statute’s broad provisions. Sen. Paul will offer that amendment this week, assuming Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is not able to block the amendment from being offered. Here’s a major concern: Assume the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) goes to the “secret court” (the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or “FISA” court) and argues, without anyone else in the room, that ALL 4473’s should be seized...

The US Senate voted to open a debate on a proposed four-year extension of the Patriot Act, a controversial anti-terrorism law passed after the September 11 attacks. Key provisions of the law, which gave the government sweeping authority to conduct anti-terrorism investigations over the protests of civil libertarians, are due to expire on Friday. The Senate voted 74-8 to open debate. A final vote is expected later this week.

Top congressional leaders agreed Thursday to a four-year extension of the anti-terrorist Patriot Act, the controversial law passed after the Sept. 11 attacks that governs the search for terrorists on American soil. The deal between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker John Boehner calls for a vote before May 27, when parts of the current act expire. The idea is to pass the extension with as little debate as possible to avoid a protracted and familiar argument over the expanded power the law gives to the government. SNIP "I still have some concerns, and at this point I'm...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- A special type of government search warrant that allows authorities to search homes without informing the owner for months is becoming more common, Target 7 has learned. /snip The number of delayed-notice search warrants spiked nationally from nearly 700 in fiscal year 2007 to close to 2,000 in 2009.

"He may be dead, but in a way, he won. We gave up our rights. We passed a PatriotAct. We spent trillions on needless wars. Fear now rules us." "BREAKING: All Repub candidates drop out of 2012 race, citing "aversion to losing badly." Would u make Pleasantville play the South Bronx?" "The monster we created-yes, WE-in the 1980s by ARMING, FUNDING, &TRAINING him in the art of terror agnst the USSR, finally had 2 b put down."

BIDEN: In full disclosure, I wrote that bill. I'm not being facetious. PRESS: It's really a great bill. BIDEN: No. No. I'm not being facetious. I'm not being facetious when I say that. I got a call from the attorney general in 1995 after the bombing of the -- in Oklahoma City. I drafted a bill as chairman of the Judiciary Committee that expanded a lot of these authorities. But none of the expansion relates to anything that will in any way jeopardize your civil liberties. Let me give you one example

White House's Newest Power Grab - A Hollywood Patriot Act Since his election as President, Barack Obama has grown government power exponentially. Failed stimulus bills, government take-over of major portions of the auto industry, bailouts of the financial industry and a government-takeover of our health care system have all increased the size, scope and power of the federal government. Apparently, we have seen nothing yet. The White House is now proposing a Hollywood version of the Patriot Act - legislation that would allow copyright wiretaps against website owners who post copyrighted materials. The proposed legislation comes on the heels...

House Chamber, Washington, D.C. February 15, 2011 M. Speaker: Last year I voted to extend the PATRIOT Act for one year. I regret that vote and was glad to have been able to correct it, although I am pained that the House voted otherwise yesterday. During this past year, I have become convinced that the provisions of the so-called PATRIOT Act are an affront to the Bill of Rights and a serious threat to our fundamental liberty as Americans. The Fourth Amendment arises from abuses of the British Crown that allowed roving searches by revenue agents under the guise of...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Rand Paul (Ky.) released the following Dear Colleague letter to his fellow Senators this morning regarding the renewal of the USA PATRIOT Act. (2/15/2011) Dear Colleague: James Otis argued against general warrants and writs of assistance that were issued by British soldiers without judicial review and that did not name the subject or items to be searched. He condemned these general warrants as "the worst instrument[s] of arbitrary power, the most destructive of English liberty and the fundamental principles of law, that ever w[ere] found in an English law book." Otis objected to these writs of...

A vote in Congress to extend three controversial provisions of the Patriot Act through December 8 failed last week, but it was primarily over procedural issues. Those technicalities should be resolved this month, permitting a new vote that will result in passage. 26 House Republicans voted against the extension, joining 122 Democrats to defeat it by seven votes. The final vote came to 277-148, which was not enough since the Republicans brought the bill up under a special expedited procedure requiring a two-thirds majority. The Republicans had miscalculated and assumed they had two-thirds of the votes required for a rush...

In a turnaround from last Tuesday, when they failed to renew provisions of the Patriot act, House Republicans succeeded on Monday in extending the soon-to-expire surveillance provisions of the nation's anti-terrorism law. ... ... In a statement from the Heritage Foundation that supported renewal of the Patriot Act, legal experts surmised that liberal-left politicians and their supporters interested in "adding more hoops for investigators to jump through-in time-sensitive investigations-would kill the law's ability to fulfill its very purpose: to help stop terrorism."

(NewsCore) - The US House of Representatives Monday passed an extension of the Patriot Act, a counterterrorism surveillance law originally passed by Congress in October, 2001 following the Sept. 11 attacks.

Exclusive: Release prompts claim Islamist was US informant while assisting London terroris An American jihadist who set up the terrorist training camp where the leader of the 2005 London suicide bombers learned how to manufacture explosives, has been quietly released after serving only four and a half years of a possible 70-year sentence, a Guardian investigation has learned. The unreported sentencing of Mohammed Junaid Babar to "time served" because of what a New York judge described as "exceptional co-operation" that began even before his arrest has raised questions over whether Babar was a US informer at the time he was...

Washington is confused; Hollywood is not real. In the movie Minority Report, Tom Cruise heads a police division called “Pre-crime.” I watched it and thought: ’Cool movie.’ John Ashcroft watched it and thought: ’Let’s do it!’ Recently Congress attempted to reauthorize 3 (three) “non-controversial” (read: “completely unconstitutional”) sections of The Patriot Act. For those who like to see for themselves google these variously: patriot act sec. 1805; patriot act sec. 1861; or, patriot act sec. 1862 Now, I could copy and paste the pertinent parts, but then you wouldn’t read it, so I will use a modicum of artistic license…...

Tina Dupont didn’t know about one of the provisions of the PATRIOT Act until she read what U.S. Congressman Justin Amash had posted on his Facebook page. Amash wrote he had voted Feb. 9 against extending three of the provisions of the national security act because: “[T]his renewal allows the government to obtain a broad production order to confiscate your business records, without disclosing to you the purposes of the investigation, while prohibiting you from discussing it with anyone.” “That bothers me,” said Dupont, a member of the Tea Party of West Michigan. “If you are going to be arrested...

National Security: The failure of a fast-track extension of three key Patriot Act amendments does not spell their demise. It may be time to appreciate how successful they've been and how necessary they are. Tuesday's 277-148 House vote to extend three key provisions of the Patriot Act fell just shy of the two-thirds necessary for passage under suspension of the rules. While not a final defeat, it is an embarrassment for Republican leaders who thought it was a slam dunk. Twenty-six Republicans joined 122 Democrats in opposing the renewal of provisions that have helped prevent a successful terrorist act on...

Rand Paul explains why the Patriot Act is a threat to the U.S. Constitution.

This week some House Republicans voted against the extension of portions of the Patriot Act. Many of the 'nay' votes were freshmen and have argued against what they call the excesses of these provisions. Large portions of the Democratic caucus also voted against the extension. The majority of House Republicans voted for the passage. So what do you think?

It was the Congressional version of never count your chickens before they're hatched. And when you do on Capitol Hill, you can sometimes lose a vote. The newly-minted House Republican leadership botched a vote Tuesday night when it presumed it had the necessary support to reauthorize the Patriot Act, the anti-terrorism law imposed after September 11th. The GOP expected little trouble with the bill. So Republicans brought the Patriot Act to the floor under a special procedure that requires a two-thirds vote for passage. It's a maneuver that's typically reserved for non-controversial legislation or bills that carry wide support. Renewing...

A measure to extend key provisions of the Patriot Act counterterrorism surveillance law through December failed the House Tuesday night, with more than two-dozen Republicans bucking their party to oppose the measure. The House measure, which was sponsored by Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) and required a two-thirds majority for passage, failed on a 277-to-148 vote. Twenty-six Republicans voted with 122 Democrats to oppose the measure, while 67 Democrats voted with 210 Republicans to back it. Ten members did not vote. The measure would have extended three key provisions of the Patriot Act that are set to expire on Monday, Feb....

Three sections of the Patriot Act — the so-called 'library provision' that allows a secret court to issue orders for anything deemed relevant to an investigation; the roving wiretap provision that allows the government to get a wiretap order that doesn't specify the person or place to be tapped; and the 'lone wolf' provision, which permits intelligence wiretapping of people not connected to a terrorist group — are scheduled to expire on February 28. It's February 7. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) recently suggested that Congress doesn't have enough time to consider reforms this year. That was the excuse for...