Title: USA PATRIOT Act legal definition of USA PATRIOT Act
Headings: USA PATRIOT Act of 2001
USA PATRIOT Act of 2001
USA PATRIOT Act of 2001
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Content: Critics of the act have charged that the government gained the power to investigate and detain persons with little oversight from the courts. In the aftermath of the september 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, U.S. political leaders sought to address terrorism with new vigor. President george w. bush and Attorney General john ashcroft presented Congress with proposed legislation on September 17, 2001, that focused on intelligence gathering, immigration, criminal justice, and Money Laundering. The administration sought new powers to conduct searches of people suspected of terrorism; to detain and deport persons suspected of terrorist involvement; and to remove statutes of limitations on terrorism. In addition, the administration wanted the Justice Department to have the power to place wiretaps on the phones and computers of anyone suspected of terrorism. This initial proposal became the framework for the USA PATRIOT Act, which was first introduced in the House of Representatives on October 2. A similar law was introduced in the Senate on October 4, and on October 12 it passed on a vote of 96–1, with only Senator Russell Feingold (D-Wisc.) dissenting.