Harry Reid: “in approximately an hour and a half, there will be a vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the PATRIOT Act conference…”

“in approximately an hour and a half, there will be a vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the PATRIOT Act conference report. Rather than terminate debate on this flawed piece of legislation, the Senate should work harder to achieve a strong, bipartisan PATRIOT Act that strengthens national security while protecting the privacy of innocent Americans. Earlier this year, after negotiations that went late into the night, the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved a bill to reauthorize and improve the PATRIOT Act. Soon after, the full Senate passed this bill by unanimous consent. Every Senator, Democrat and Republican, approved this reauthorization of the PATRIOT Act. Every Democrat and every Republican in the Senate--every one of us--is firmly on record in support of giving law enforcement the appropriate tools to fight terrorism. We all know the House of Representatives is in shambles. Leadership is in a state of disarray. The spirit of bipartisanship that led to passage of the Senate bill, because of the problems in the House of Representatives, did not prevail in the conference. Not long after the House appointed conferees, Democratic negotiators were shut out of discussions. In fact, Senator Leahy's staff was directed by the chairman of the Judiciary Committee in the House to leave the room. The final bill was written by Republican-only conferees working behind closed doors with Justice Department lawyers.…”