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> The surveillance powers of the Patriot Act needed renewal by March 15, 2020, and after it expired, the U.S. Senate approved an amended version of the bill. A

> The surveillance powers of the Patriot Act needed renewal by March 15, 2020, and after it expired, the U.S. Senate approved an amended version of the bill. After President Donald Trump threatened to veto the bill, the House of Representatives issued an indefinite postponement of the vote to pass the Senate version of the bill; as of December 2020, the Patriot Act remains expired. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriot_Act#Section_expirations https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriot_Act#Section_expiration...

TheRealDunkirk 5y ago
I did not know this, and I really appreciate the link. However, since Echelon -- the instantiation of the technology to do so in the first place -- the NSA has been intercepting and logging ANY AND ALL "signals" it can, foreign and domestic, the 4th Amendment (and whatever related laws) be damned. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A, and the law that retroactively made it legal, discussed on HN previously: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5847166 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5847166. The Patriot Act was a piece of paper, just thin enough that the courts could point to it if cornered, in order to excuse anything the government did, in the name of terrorism. I don't know what they'll point to now, but I'm sure they'll find something. Meanwhile, the unrestrained wiretapping continues as it ever has. If you aren't using end-to-end encryption, your information is in a database at the NSA. Snowden proved it, and there has been little but gestures since his revelations.
- saalweachter 5y ago
  Yeah, it was never just "the Patriot Act" and it wasn't rejected particularly thoroughly so no one would be terribly surprised if the Patriot Act 2: Electric Boogaloo happened tomorrow. But still, the regular renewals have ended and the Patriot Act is dead. It's not surprising that it wasn't bigger news -- March 2020 was a little busy -- but it's worth taking the win.

TheRealDunkirk 5y ago

I did not know this, and I really appreciate the link. However, since Echelon -- the instantiation of the technology to do so in the first place -- the NSA has been intercepting and logging ANY AND ALL "signals" it can, foreign and domestic, the 4th Amendment (and whatever related laws) be damned. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A, and the law that retroactively made it legal, discussed on HN previously: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5847166 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5847166. The Patriot Act was a piece of paper, just thin enough that the courts could point to it if cornered, in order to excuse anything the government did, in the name of terrorism. I don't know what they'll point to now, but I'm sure they'll find something. Meanwhile, the unrestrained wiretapping continues as it ever has. If you aren't using end-to-end encryption, your information is in a database at the NSA. Snowden proved it, and there has been little but gestures since his revelations.

saalweachter 5y ago
Yeah, it was never just "the Patriot Act" and it wasn't rejected particularly thoroughly so no one would be terribly surprised if the Patriot Act 2: Electric Boogaloo happened tomorrow. But still, the regular renewals have ended and the Patriot Act is dead. It's not surprising that it wasn't bigger news -- March 2020 was a little busy -- but it's worth taking the win.