[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 139 (Tuesday, October 16, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1896-E1897]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          PATRIOT ACT OF 2001

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. PATSY T. MINK

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 12, 2001

  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, on September 11, 2001 our national 
tranquility was shattered by terrorists dedicated to violence at a 
scale we have not seen before. All of us watched in horror as airplanes 
were used as weapons of mass murder.
  Following the attacks, the administration warned us that the 
terrorists operated within the United States. The Attorney General came 
to Congress and asked for broad powers to rout out the terrorists who 
may remain among us.
  Fear has crept over our nation. Many Americans across the nation look 
with suspicion at their Muslim and Arab neighbors. People refuse to 
touch letters from far away countries. Passengers are denied access to 
planes because they have last names that sound Arabic. Mosques and 
businesses owned by Arab American have been attacked by vandals. Some 
Arab Americans have tragically lost their lives in acts of racial 
hatred.
  As legislators, we need to ensure that any measure designed to 
strengthen federal investigative powers do not go too far. We must not 
let fear entice us to toss away the civil liberties that are the 
centerpiece of our democratic society.
  I agree that America must pursue the villains who conspired to kill 
innocent Americans and to bring our country to a grinding halt. But we 
must not violate constitutional principles in our search for the 
conspirators.
  The measures included in the USA Act go too far. We tossed away the 
bipartisan compromise painstakingly passed unanimously by the House 
Judiciary Committee. We were denied legislative due process. The 
Committee decision was trashed.
  H.R. 2975 allows law enforcement agencies to wiretap and monitor 
Internet use whenever intelligence gathering constitutes a 
``significant purpose'' of the surveillance. We should not expose 
citizens to invasions of privacy under vague phrases such as 
``significant purpose.''
  The bill H.R. 2975 does not include adequate safeguards to prevent 
the government from monitoring the communications of innocent people. 
Citizens may be monitored simply by using a pay phone frequented by 
terrorists. People may have the shadow of suspicion cast over them by 
calling a suspected terrorist. Guilt by association will take us back 
to the dark days of the baseless inflammatory accusations made by the 
House Un-American Activities Committee.
  H.R. 2975 gives the Immigration and Naturalization Service unchecked 
ability to detain aliens for up to seven days without charges. If the 
Attorney General continues to detain an individual after seven days, 
the bill limits the suspect's ability to appeal their detention.
  We do not need to expand existing powers the government has used to 
detain 698 people

[[Page E1897]]

during its terrorist investigations. At least 165 people have been held 
for violating immigration laws and can be detained indefinitely if the 
government begins deportation proceedings. The government does not even 
need to prove that they are suspects. Many are detained merely because 
they are material witnesses.
  The bill H.R. 2975 allows grand jury and other sensitive information 
to be shared with other agencies. It will allow law enforcement and 
intelligence agencies to share information without a court order. 
Absent judicial oversight, a key element that prevents significant 
abuses of power by our law enforcement agencies is removed.
  Under H.R. 2975, the government will define ``federal terrorism 
offense'' as the intent to influence or affect the conduct of 
government by intimidation or coercion, or to retaliate against 
government conduct. This unclear definition may include groups such as 
Green Peace along with the terrorists.
  These measures will take us back to the time when the FBI and CIA 
investigated citizens such as Martin Luther King and his associates 
simply because they were deemed a threat to the nation.
  Does anyone want to live in a country where you must hide your 
thoughts and avoid associations for fear of becoming tainted as a 
terrorist sympathizer?
  We must not allow the terrorists to scare us into destroying our 
cherished values and rights.
  I urge my colleagues to listen to the voices of moderation and 
reason. Do not toss away our sacred civil liberties.
  Vote ``No'' on H.R. 2975 to protect the constitutional principles 
that have protected the citizens of this nation for more than 200 
years.

                          ____________________