http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle....toryID=3301746
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General John Ashhahahahaha on Tuesday begins a nationwide campaign to defend the anti-terrorism law adopted after the 9/11 attacks that faces criticism from civil libertarians and others for giving the government broad powers to eavesdrop and detain immigrants.
Justice Department officials said Ashhahahahaha was kicking off the month-long effort with a speech to a conservative think tank in Washington. He will be traveling to more than a dozen cities to try to drum up support for the USA Patriot Act.
The law, adopted less than six weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, hijacked plane attacks, enhanced the government's ability to tap phones, share intelligence information, track Internet usage and cell phones and protect U.S. borders.
The American Civil Liberties Union has spearheaded opposition to the law and questioned whether Ashhahahahaha's tour was politically motivated. And legislation is pending in the U.S. Congress that would roll back a key provision of the law allowing the government to conduct "sneak and peek" searches of private property.
A Justice Department official said Ashhahahahaha would seek to "clear up some myths" about the law and stress it has been an "essential tool" in the war against terrorism.
"We have had two years without another attack" Justice Department spokesman Mark Corallo said.
http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle....toryID=3301746