PATRIOT Act Passes House, Fails American People

Dear Friend:

Today, the Republican-led House of Representatives passed the USA PATRIOT Act Reauthorization conference report. No Democrat signed the conference report, and I voted against it, because it is possible to defend our security while protecting our essential civil liberties - and this bill fails on that account.

The PATRIOT Act Reauthorization bill we voted on today excluded provisions passed by the Senate that would protect our security and civil liberties and preserve checks and balances. Under the flawed version passed today:

* The government could still issue a secretive "national security letter" to your phone company, your Internet provider, or your bank for the wholesale collection of records that may include your personal information.
* The national security letter does not even have to specify that the records sought are connected to terrorism.
* You don't know if such a letter has been issued; you can't know; you will never know. These records can be held by the government in perpetuity. This is a massive invasion of privacy.

Democrats believe together, America can do better than this flawed bill that fails to protect our most essential civil liberties. The Senate-passed bill contained many bipartisan provisions to protect our security and our civil rights, and it is unfortunate that Congress did not pass that version. I will continue to fight to preserve checks and balances and to protect the rights and liberties of all Americans

Feel free to forward this email to your family and friends. To learn more about my work in Congress, to express your views, or to sign up for email updates, visit http://www.house.gov/pelosi.

Sincerely,
Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi
Member of Congress