Rand Paul: “I want to thank the majority leader for agreeing to allow a debate on this important legislation. We will have time to…”

“I want to thank the majority leader for agreeing to allow a debate on this important legislation. We will have time to amend it in the next 3 months, discuss it fully. When the PATRIOT Act was passed in the first place, it was passed in a hurry, without committee hearings, and in a climate of fear and anger after 9/11. Congress was sensitive to the fact that the fourth amendment was being abridged. That is why these legislative proposals were sunset. It was not just so we could pass them by unanimous consent without voting. It was done so we could review how well we are doing with these, and whether we are abridging the freedoms guaranteed under the fourth amendment. There are a couple of things that bother me about the PATRIOT Act. No. 1, the national security letters. These have been mentioned previously, and I think the points are well taken. Some try to argue, oh, these are simply subpoenas so you can do anything you want. I think they are searches of private records and should be reviewed by a judge. But even if you argue that they were subpoenas, if you have a subpoena, your lawyer is allowed to make a motion to quash your subpoena, your lawyer is allowed to represent you. In the craziness after 9/11, when the PATRIOT Act was passed, it was actually illegal to consult an attorney. If you were given a national security letter saying you were being investigated, you could go to jail for 5 years by telling your attorney.”