Mar. 01, 2006 - 17:50 MST

MISNOMER

Milling around, flailing at things imagined and generally adding to the confusion already existing it seems to me is what our administration is doing. There is an article in this morning's Rocky Mountain News by Laurie Kellman of the Associated Press that has a bearing on my thoughts. In full:

PATRIOT ACT ADVANCES BUT SATISFIES FEW

Under the pressure of coming elections, bill moves in Senate

WASHINGTON -- "Months overdue in a midterm election year, the USA Patriot Act renewal cleared a final hurdle Tuesday in the Senate on its way to President Bush's desk."

"But the bill's sponsor said he is unsatisfied with the measure's privacy protections and he's far from done tinkering with the centerpiece of Bush's war on terrorism."

"The issue is not concluded," said Senate Judiciary Commettee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa."

"He said he plans more legislation and hearings on restoring curbs on government power that House members rejected."

"The Senate voted 69-30 Tuesday -- 60 votes were needed -- to limit debate and bring the bill to a final vote that could occur as early as today."

"The House then would vote and send the legislation to the White House."

"Sixteen major provisions would expire March 10 if President Bush doesn't sign the bill by then."

"Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, did not vote."

"First passed in the weeks after the 2001 terrorist attacks, the law has been extended twice for lack of congressional accord over the balance between civil liberties protections and law-enforcement tools in terorism investigations."

"Several Democrats voted "no" on the test vote Tuesday to protest the GOP majority's refusal to allow amendments, but said they would vote for the bill on final passage. These lawmakers included Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the Judiciary Committee's senior Democrat."

"Others still plan to vote against the bill as a whole, but they stand little chance of blocking it. Led by Sens. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., and Robert C. Byrd, D-WVa., they contend that the months of haggling produced few meaningful curbs on government power."

"Specter agreed on that point. Even as he urged his colleagues to vote this week for the bill, he introduced a separate bill to make the government satisfy a higher threshold for wiretaps without warrants and to set a four-year expiration date for the use of National Security Letters in terrorism investigations."

"

"However appetizing to Specter's colleagues in the Senate, the new bill represents items House Republicans flatly rejected during talks last year."

"House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., had insisted that once the House approves the renewal and sends it to Bush, his chamber is done with the issue for the year."

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I have seen no big publicity propaganda from our administration of the success the Patriot Act has made against terrorists. Nor have I seen in-depth reporting coming up with something positive on the success of the Patriot Act.

Our administration has built and combined things into a vast Homeland Security force and what are they really doing other than costing the public tax dollars.

And like I once said, and perhaps more than once, the administration is building a framework that can allow a dictatorship to become a legal form of our government (by their precepts). Perhaps they won't stoop so far, but if the tools are there, someone will pick them up and use them it appears to me.

And having said this before, I repeat, calling it the Patriot Act is one hell of a MISNOMER . . . . . . . . . . .

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