Title: Post-9/11 Changes By the U.S. Government
Headings: Post-9/11 Changes By the U.S. Government
Post-9/11 Changes By the U.S. Government
Has the government's response to 9/11 compromised civil rights in the name of national security?
USA Patriot Act and Domestic Spying
Department of Homeland Security
Military Tribunals and Guantnamo
Prisoner Abuse
Go It Alone Defense Doctrine
September 11 Commission Releases Its Report

Content: Indeed, many people have asked if the counterterrorism measures have made us safer or have ushered in unwanted consequences: emboldening and inciting our stateless enemies, thus encouraging the spread of al-Qaeda, and skewing the system of checks and balances that is the foundation of U.S. democracy through the overreach of presidential authority. Here is a look at major legislation passed since the attacks and the effects of the laws. USA Patriot Act and Domestic Spying
In October 2001, Congress?just one vote short of unanimous bipartisan support?passed the USA Patriot Act. The measure gave law enforcement officials sweeping new powers to conduct searches without warrants, monitor financial transactions and eavesdrop, and detain and deport, in secret, individuals suspected of committing terrorist acts. The law has been a source of controversy since it was enacted. Civil libertarians criticized the law, saying it would result in overzealous use of wiretaps on individuals and businesses and less judicial scrutiny of the process, as well as unjustified detention of immigrants. In fact, under the law, about 1,200 people were detained for months without access to lawyers or the release of their names. In August 2002, a U.S. Court of Appeals ruled these secret detentions unconstitutional: " The executive branch seeks to uproot people's lives, outside the public eye, and behind a closed door.