On The Front Lines
The Rutherford Institute Responds to Attorney General John Ashcroft's Patriot Act 'Victory' Tour, Life & Liberty Website
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.. -- In a point-by-point response to Attorney General John Ashcroft's nationwide tour and media-friendly "talking points" in defense of the U.S.A. Patriot Act, The Rutherford Institute has issued a legal memorandum refuting the legislation that Ashcroft claims "has played a key part--and often the leading role--in a number of successful operations to protect innocent Americans from the deadly plans of terrorists dedicated to destroying America and our way of life."In the interest of providing an objective check to an issue charged with patriotic emotion, the Institute's memorandum, entitled Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Terrorists: A Rutherford Institute Response to Attorney General John Ashcroft's "Patriot Act Tour" and Website, examines whether the Justice Department's glowing review of the Patriot Act's track record stands up to close scrutiny. For example, the memorandum asks, "Does the Patriot Act merely permit investigators to use tools already available to combat organized crime and drug trafficking? Does the Patriot Act facilitate information sharing and cooperation among government agencies so that they can better connect the dots? Does the Patriot Act assure Americans that only dangerous 'terrorists' will be targeted?"
Click here to read the memorandum and other related articles on The Rutherford Institute website.
"When the Patriot Act restricts or weakens constitutional and statutory protections for fundamental rights of privacy and personal autonomy, including a right characterized by the Supreme Court as being 'as old as the Magna Carta,' one can surely forgive a reasonable observer for wondering whether, in throwing off 'inhibitions' on law enforcement for the sake of its pursuit of terrorists, America has carefully calibrated the ramifications of this authoritarian revolution for its continued commitment to the life and liberty of all its people," concluded John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute.
The Rutherford Institute is an international, nonprofit civil liberties organization committed to defending constitutional and human rights.
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