http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/05/...pt=T1&iref=BN1
"Senate approves extension of expiring Patriot Act provisions
Washington (CNN) -- The Senate voted Thursday to extend three key provisions of the Patriot Act scheduled to expire at midnight, sending the measure to the House for consideration.
The House had been scheduled to begin its Memorial Day recess on Thursday afternoon. However, a protracted dispute over the legislation in the Senate, fueled by conservative newcomer Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, muddied voting schedules and required the House to stay longer than planned.
Late Thursday afternoon, Paul reached a deal with Senate leaders to allow votes on whether to table two of his amendments. Both amendments failed, and the subsequent vote on the measure to extend the Patriot Act provisions for four years passed easily on a 72-23 vote.
The expiring provisions of the law passed after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks deal with roving wiretaps, tracking alleged "lone wolf" terrorists, and the ability of law enforcement officials to obtain any records they deem relevant to an investigation.
While the Senate approval was expected, passage in the House could be tougher as lawmakers on the right and left oppose an extension for various reasons. For example, some members of Congress are concerned about the law's impact on civil liberties, while others support the law but think it should be made permanent.
The House planned to take up the measure later Thursday and expected to complete its work well before midnight.
One of the three provisions, Section 206 of the Patriot Act, provides for roving wiretap surveillance of targets who try to thwart Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) surveillance. Without such roving wiretap authority, investigators would be forced to seek a new court order each time they need to change the location, phone or computer that needs to be monitored.
Another provision, Section 215 of the Patriot Act, allows the FBI to apply to the FISA court to issue orders granting the government access to any tangible items in foreign intelligence, international terrorism and clandestine intelligence cases.
The third provision, Section 6001 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act of 2004, closes a loophole that could allow individual terrorists not affiliated with specific organizations to slip through the cracks of FISA surveillance. Law enforcement officials refer to it as the "lone wolf" provision.
Legislators opposed to the extensions claim the provisions -- particularly related to wiretapping -- are intrusive and unconstitutional. Supporters argue they are a critical component of U.S. anti-terror operations.
Paul, a favorite of the Tea Party movement, engaged in a bitter showdown Wednesday with Senate Majority Harry Reid, D-Nevada, who sought to limit the number of amendments that Paul could offer.
Then on Thursday, Paul complained it was Senate Republican leaders now holding up consideration of his amendments.
In a rare public rebuke of his own party's leadership, Paul told CNN he was "disappointed" by their actions and urged people to contact GOP leadership offices in protest.
"I've been working for two long days filibustering the Patriot Act in hopes that we can have a constitutional debate over certain provisions of it and we can try to reform it to take away some of the encroachments on our freedoms," Paul said in an interview. "Unfortunately, what we're finding now is that the Democrats have agreed to allow me to have amendments but my own party is refusing to allow me to debate or present my amendments."
In particular, Paul sought to propose an amendment preventing warrant-less access to some gun records. Republicans leaders don't want a vote on his amendment because they are conflicted by it, Paul said.
They don't want to vote to weaken the Patriot Act by making it more difficult for law enforcement to obtain any information -- including gun records -- related to a terrorism investigation, he said, but they also don't want to take a vote that will be potentially viewed negatively by gun rights groups.
One Senate Republican leader, Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona, rejected Paul's analysis but refused to explain why or even if GOP leaders were blocking Paul's amendment.
"This will be all be very clear in a couple of hours," Kyl said.
After reaching the deal to debate two of his amendments, Paul said on the Senate floor that his motivation was to protect personal liberties, rather than to harm the Patriot Act or undermine security in any way.
"It's very important that we are always vigilant, that we are eternally vigilant about the powers of government," Paul said in arguing for tighter restrictions on the ability of federal investigators to access some gun ownership records.
He went on to complain in general about what he characterized as a federal over-reaction to the 9/11 attacks that reduced individual liberty in the name of security. For example, he said, airline travelers are all considered possible terrorists and screened for security reasons, describing such a strategy as a "shotgun" approach.
"Are we so afraid that we're giving up all of our liberty for security?" Paul asked, calling for tighter restrictions on what the government can investigate without a search warrant.
However, fellow conservative Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Georgia, said Paul's amendment to end warrant-less access to gun records would hinder the government's ability to prevent terrorist attacks within the United States.
"I don't understand why we would take this tool away from national security investigators," Chambliss said, adding there were "no reports that the government has ever used these provisions to violate anyone's Second Amendment rights."
CNN's Deirdre Walsh and Tom Cohen contributed to this story."