Title: The Patriot Act: Does it actually work? - Los Angeles Times
Headings: The Patriot Act: Does it actually work?
The Patriot Act: Does it actually work?
Point: Jena Baker McNeill
Counterpoint: Julian Sanchez
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Content: Numerous operatives have been arrested and convicted. Much of the credit should go to the Patriot Act. Take, for example, the Lackawanna Six plot that was foiled in 2002. Thanks to certain provisions of the Patriot Act, drug and counter-terrorism investigators were able to share information, a practice that would not have occurred before the law was passed in 2001. Without the Patriot Act, the plot may well have resulted in another 9/11. These plots weren’t foiled thanks to happenstance or sheer luck. While the U.S. does have world-class law enforcement capabilities, investigators can only perform as well as the tools at their disposal allow. One such tool is the Patriot Act. The Patriot Act has helped law enforcement officials apprehend hundreds of suspects, and it isn’t just one provision of the act that has proved useful. For instance, the surveillance provision was used successfully in the Portland Seven investigation, which may well have prevented an attack on synagogues and Jewish schools.