Hearing Of The Constitution Subcommittee Of The House Judiciary Committee- USA PATRIOT Act

Statement

Ranking Member Smith: America is fortunate not to have experienced a terrorist attack since 2001. But we must not be lulled into a false sense of security. The threat from terrorists and others who wish to kill Americans remains high.

In the eight years since the attacks of September 11th, 2001, Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations have continued their war against innocent civilians worldwide. In 2004, 191 people were killed in the Madrid train bombings. In 2005, 52 innocent civilians were killed when suicide bombers attacked the London subway. And last year, 164 people were killed in Mumbai by a Pakistan-based terrorist organization.

Counter-terrorism tools helped British and American authorities foil the 2006 plot to attack as many as 10 airplanes flying from Great Britain to the U.S. Two weeks ago, three of the plotters were convicted of planning to blow up passenger planes using liquid explosives. According to British prosecutors, if the terrorists had been successful, they would have killed thousands of innocent passengers.

In 2007, federal authorities thwarted two terrorist attempts on U.S. soil--a plot to kill U.S. soldiers at the Fort Dix Army Base, and a plot to bomb JFK International Airport by planting explosives around fuel tanks and a fuel pipeline. Again, surveillance and investigative techniques saved lives.

Many of these plots would not have been thwarted, the terrorists would not have been convicted, and thousands of lives would not have been saved without the PATRIOT Act.

The PATRIOT Act gives intelligence officials the ability to investigate terrorists and prevent attacks. We cannot afford to let these life-saving provisions expire.

Last March, I introduced the Safe and Secure America Act of 2009 to extend for 10 years sections 206 and 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act and section 6001 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which are scheduled to sunset on December 31, 2009.

For years, the PATRIOT Act has been subject to misinformation and rumors about how intelligence officials can use its provisions. As Congress once again considers these provisions, we must ensure that the debate is about facts, not fiction.

The expiring provisions we are considering today are designed to be used only by intelligence officials investigating terrorists and spies in cases involving national security.

Despite allegations that the PATRIOT Act is unconstitutional, these provisions have been upheld in court and are similar to those used in criminal investigations. The PATRIOT Act simply applies these same provisions to intelligence gathering and national security investigations.

The Director of the FBI, Robert Mueller, in testimony before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees earlier this year urged Congress to renew what he called "exceptional" intelligence-gathering tools.

The Obama administration decided last week that it agrees with Director Mueller and finally called for reauthorization of the three expiring PATRIOT Act provisions.

America is safe today not because terrorists and spies have given up trying to destroy us and our freedoms. Just this past week three individuals with links to al-Qaeda were arrested in connection with a plot to set off bombs in New York City.

America is safe today because the men and women of the intelligence community use the PATRIOT Act to protect us. The threat to America from terrorists, spies and enemy countries will not sunset at the end of this year and neither should America's anti-terrorism laws.

The PATRIOT Act works exceedingly well. If the PATRIOT Act expires or is weakened, American lives will be put at risk.

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