Washington – The House renewed the USA Patriot Act in a cliffhanger vote Tuesday night, extending a centerpiece of the war on terrorism at President Bush’s urging after months of political combat over the balance between privacy rights and the pursuit of potential terrorists.
Bush, forced by filibuster to accept new curbs on law enforcement investigations, is expected to sign the legislation before 16 provisions of the 2001 law expire Friday.
The vote was 280-138, just two more than needed under special rules that required a two-thirds majority.
Democratic Rep. Diana DeGette of Denver was the only member of the Colorado House delegation who opposed the bill.
Despite what she called “small improvements” to the law, “it will remain too easy for the government to fish through the private information of innocent Americans,” she said.
The passage was a political victory for Bush and will allow congressional Republicans facing midterm elections this year to continue touting a tough-on-terrorism stance.
Bush’s approval ratings have suffered in recent months after revelations that he had authorized secret, warrantless wiretapping of Americans.
That issue helped fuel a two-month Senate filibuster that forced the White House to accept some new restrictions on information gathered in terrorism probes.
Republicans on Tuesday declared the legislative war won, saying the renewal of the act’s 16 provisions along with new curbs on government investigatory power will help law enforcement prevent terrorists from striking.
But the debate over the balance between a strong war against terrorists and civil liberties protections is far from over.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding hearings on the domestic wiretapping program.
Additionally, chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the chief author of the Patriot Act renewal, has introduced a new measure “to provide extra protections that better comport with my sensitivity of civil rights.”
