U.S. Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., introduced a proposal this week to repeal the Patriot Act.
Steube brought out the “Protect Our Civil Liberties Act,” which will “repeal the USA PATRIOT Act and the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 in an effort to restore Americans’ civil liberties, guaranteed by our Constitution.”
Steube weighed in on why he offered the proposal.
“For decades now, the misnamed Patriot Act and the 2008 FISA Amendments have allowed the federal government to trample on the rights of law-abiding American citizens. As the federal government has become increasingly weaponized against its own people, it is imperative we rein in this overreach,” said Steube. “We can have a secure nation and retain our civil liberties at the same time.”
“The USA PATRIOT Act was a hurried rewrite of our nation’s surveillance laws in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The result was expanded government overreach and increased capabilities for the U.S. government to spy, conduct warrantless searches, and obtain private records – even those records held by third parties. Reports have shown the FBI has seriously abused sections of the USA PATRIOT Act. The FISA Amendments Act has wrongfully permitted the government to collect mass amounts of Americans’ personal data and communications, including email traffic, phone calls, and text messages in the name of national security,” Steube’s office noted.
The bill has a host of committee stops, including the U.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the U.S. House Judiciary; Financial Services; Foreign Affairs; Energy and Commerce; Education and the Workforce; Transportation and Infrastructure; and the Armed Services Committees.
There are no House co-sponsors and no companion measure over in the U.S. Senate.
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