alexpgp | No duh...

From Ron Paul (R-TX), who seems more libertarian than mainstream Republican:

Mr. Ashcroft is an administrator, not a legislator. It is not his job to write laws or say what the law should be. His job is to execute the laws passed by Congress. It is not his place to chide Congress or the American people for not supporting his viewpoint. He certainly should not be spending taxpayer money to lobby for his political positions.

Mr. Ashcroft complains that the Patriot Act is misunderstood. But it’s not the American public’s fault nobody knows exactly what the Patriot Act does. The Act contains over 500 pages of detailed legalese, the full text of which was neither read nor made available to Congress before it was voted on- which by itself should have convinced members to vote against it. Many of the surveillance powers authorized in the Act are not clearly defined and have not yet been tested. When they are tested, court challenges are sure to follow. The Act’s complexity is even more troubling when we consider how powers given to the Justice department today might be abused by future administrations.

It is clear, however, that the Patriot Act expands the government’s ability to monitor us. The Act eases federal rules for search warrants in some cases; allows expanded wiretaps and internet monitoring; allows secret "sneak and peek" searches; and even permits federal agents to examine library and bookstore records. On these grounds alone it should be soundly rejected.

Fat chance. Once power is granted to the government, it's not easy to get it back. Moreover, the ability to use such power is not limited to those who "won" it; political tides will turn, and different oxen will be gored.

I do find it interesting that Rep. Paul quotes an article Alan Greenspan wrote, in 1966 in The Objectivist, in a recent speech on Paper Money and Tyrrany.

Cheers...