BSS 480 Analysis of the USA Patriot Act

Analysis of the USA Patriot Act

BSS/480

Analysis of the USA Patriot Act

On October 26, 2001, President George W. Bush signed the Patriot Act, an anti-terrorism law drawn up in response to the attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. According to “George W. Bush Signs the Patriot Act” (2017), “On this day in 2001, President George W. Bush signs the Patriot Act, an anti-terrorism law drawn up in response to the attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. The USA PATRIOT Act, as it is officially known, is an acronym for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism. Bush hoped the bipartisan legislation would empower law enforcement and intelligence agencies to prevent future terrorist attacks on American soil. The law was intended, in Bush’s words, to enhance the penalties that will fall on terrorists or anyone who helps them. The act increased intelligence agencies’ ability to share information and lifted restrictions on communications surveillance. Law enforcement officials were given broader mandates to fight financial counterfeiting, smuggling and money laundering schemes that funded terrorists. The Patriot Act’s expanded definition of terrorism also gave the FBI increased powers to access personal information such as medical and financial records. The Patriot Act superseded all state laws.” (“George W. Bush Signs the Patriot Act”, 2017).

It can be said that things have changed since the Patriot Act was passed. An environment of fear has been placed on society since the Government has implemented so many rules and laws to prevent another attack on this country. The rights of many have been violated because of the known threats that are still out there and keeps this fear factor into place until there is a way to figure out how to keep this country safe from another terrorist attack. Government Securities and intelligence agencies have been given the right to invade the privacy of many citizens and have also used these invasions to stop similar attacks on the country. This invasion of privacy may also have negative effects on the country. The first and fourth amendment rights that individuals living in the United States are guaranteed have been undermined to the core because of the government’s approach to keeping us safe. The First Amendment gives us freedom of speech, press, and of religion but after the 9/11 attacks these rights have almost been revoked due to the threat of another terrorist attack. Anyone speaking out or anything deemed controversial to the attacks will be punished by authorities. The fourth Amendment guards against irrational searches and seizures, but since 9/11 and the patriot act we have seen many questionable acts from our Government. In some instances, the Patriot act has not strengthened our morale but has simply violated our civil liberties. The Patriot Act was not signed for this reason and it was not meant to violate the rights of anyone. It was meant to protect the Country from acts of terrorism and help us to bounce back from the one that was committed against us in September 2011. In order to fix the things that are wrong with the act, there will need to be several revisions and an enormous amount of funding put into place. This is something that will need to be addressed for many years to come.

According to “Homeland Security and Law Enforcement” (2016), “The transition to full cooperation between local and federal agencies has met with its share of difficulties. In addition to poor inter-agency communication, other blocks to law enforcement efficiency at state, local, and federal levels since the Patriot Act include aging equipment that cannot keep up with new technology, and difficulties in interpreting and enacting search-and-seizure laws. State police must also conduct more vulnerability evaluations, which impacts the roles of police officers and investigators. The net result has been a hiring increase for specialized intelligence roles at the state and local levels. As a result of implementations proposed by the 9/11 Commission Report, state and local police agencies have found increased demands on their training facilities.” (“Homeland Security and Law Enforcement”, 2016). As a result of the Patriot Act, law enforcement has reported a shift in funding and the national security priority has weakened the efforts put forth against patrolling community crime and drug enforcement. These areas will continue to suffer as long as there is a need to protect against possible terrorist attacks and other things that may threaten the safety of our Government and its citizens. The shifting of these priorities has also affected cooperation between local, federal and state law enforcement agencies. Each agency complains that the level of support from one another has diminished as federal need for funding has increased. This in turn will affect community policing and will send the crime rate soaring because there is no support on these levels. Crime will rise and the communities will not be safe against smaller attacks because there is less policing in the area. The funds that are being taken from these places will cause the communities to suffer. Federal agencies have taken so much funding from these areas that there has become a level of neglect in policing our communities. Our communities as a whole will begin to suffer because if there is no funding then there will be no one to protect these areas from the threat of crime. The Patriot act has opened the countries eyes to many possible threats on a federal level, but it has also turned a blind eye to the smaller crimes being committed in our communities. This in turn will cause many problems between different levels of local police and government. This break down will leave our citizens vulnerable to all kinds of attacks and our communities will begin to suffer because of this.

REFERENCES:

George W. Bush signs the Patriot Act. (2017). Retrieved from http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/george-w-bush-signs-the-patriot-act

Homeland Security and Law Enforcement. (2016). Retrieved from http://www.policeemployment.com/resources/articles/homeland-security-law