Senate approves rollback of Patriot Act provision on US attorneys
By a lopsided vote, the U.S. Senate passed a
measure rolling back a provision in the PATRIOT Act that gave the attorney
general the ability to appoint U.S. attorneys without Senate
confirmation.
By a lopsided vote, the U.S. Senate passed a measure
rolling back a provision in the PATRIOT Act that gave the
attorney general the ability to appoint U.S. attorneys without Senate
confirmation.
The 94-2 vote came Tuesday afternoon. The bill now moves to the House.
The vote reflects a couple of things. One is anger from Republicans and Democrats alike over abuse of the Patriot Act provision. Another is Republicans running scared over 2008.
Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Patrick Leahy, said the Justice Department should be “above politics” and that it was the role of the attorney general to ensure that federal law enforcement officials were free of political influence.
“The Department of Justice should serve the American people by making sure the law is enforced without fear or favor. It should not be a political arm of the White House,” said Leahy.
Certainly, the flap over the U.S. attorneys played a part in this. Several weeks back, this bill couldn’t get out of committee, stopped by Senate Republicans. As much as “defenders of the faith” wish it weren’t so, a growing percentage of traditional Republican conservatives think they can take back their party.
The 94-2 vote came Tuesday afternoon. The bill now moves to the House.
The vote reflects a couple of things. One is anger from Republicans and Democrats alike over abuse of the Patriot Act provision. Another is Republicans running scared over 2008.
Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Patrick Leahy, said the Justice Department should be “above politics” and that it was the role of the attorney general to ensure that federal law enforcement officials were free of political influence.
“The Department of Justice should serve the American people by making sure the law is enforced without fear or favor. It should not be a political arm of the White House,” said Leahy.
Certainly, the flap over the U.S. attorneys played a part in this. Several weeks back, this bill couldn’t get out of committee, stopped by Senate Republicans. As much as “defenders of the faith” wish it weren’t so, a growing percentage of traditional Republican conservatives think they can take back their party.
Posted: Wed - March 21, 2007 at 08:17 AM