But what does the Patriot Act actually do? In essence, it expands the broad powers that the federal government has long possessed to investigate foreign spies to include anyone suspected of connection to terrorists.
The US Constitution's Fourth Amendment, which prohibits "unreasonable searches and seizures" without "probable cause," is the cornerstone of American civil liberty. Police must meet a high standard of proof that someone is likely involved in criminal activity before a judge will give them a warrant to search or seize their property or eavesdrop on their communications.
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The Patriot Act goes further, allowing agents to bypass the Fourth Amendment in virtually any investigation with national security implications, not just those involving alleged foreign spies. Theoretically, a wide swath of Americans could be investigated with minimal judicial oversight.
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In fact, many Patriot Act provisions were available to criminal investigators before it became law. The difference is that, under the act, agents don't have to prove probable cause to a judge to get a warrant to wiretap or search. Instead, they must seek permission from a special FISA court made up of a secretive panel of federal judges, which aren't bound by usual constitutional limitations.
Instead, they'll approve any request that clears FISA standards.
Of 15,000 FISA search requests in the last two decades, judges have rejected only ONE.more...
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/president/articles/2003/11/30/patriot_act_stirs_worry_but_its_been_little_used/yeah, nothin to worry about...
the goverment already had most of these powers anyways.
btw: guess which admin is credited with of goining soft and turning a FISA request down... *
Access Denied
Zacarias Moussauoi (911 Suspect)
A booking shot from the Sherburne County, Minn. sheriff's office
FBI agents in Minneapolis weren’t given approval to search terrorist suspect’s hard drive by the Justice Department. If ‘two and two’ were put together could hijackings have been stopped, asks one investigator
By Michael Isikoff
and Daniel Klaidman
NEWSWEEK WEB EXCLUSIVE
more...
http://www.msnbc.com/news/636610.asppeace