THE SEAN HANNITY SHOW

Patriot Act Lapses Over the weekend, the Senate failed to pass the necessary legislation in order to keep certain aspects of the Patriot Act from expiring.  As a result, at least for the moment, the NSA isn't collecting information on us. The USA Patriot Act was passed after 9/11 and codified many of the intelligence gathering practices that have since been revealed by Edward Snowden.  Among the many NSA activities that became a point of public debate was the issue of metadata.  Metadata is basic information related to data.  For example, the time and length of a phone call or the author and IP address origin of an email but not the content itself.  Experts say that metadata is actually more useful and can provide more information than the content of the data itself. Therefore, the NSA began collecting this metadata on everyone.  In the wake of 9/11, the impetus was that the collection of such material would aid tracking those engaged in terrorist activities and preventing another attack from occurring. But the collection of this data comes with drawbacks, including violations of our Constitutional rights.  Is the unknowing collection of such information, for example, a violation of our Fourth Amendment rights related to improper search and seizure?  Do we have a right to privacy that is protected by the Bill of Rights and cannot be violated by the government? What's The Big Deal? Some would argue that the collection of such information does not impinge on our rights, and it doesn't really affect you if you have nothing to hide.  They would also argue that giving up some of our rights is necessary in order to protect Americans from another terrorist attack.  In other words, our security and the government's role in maintaining that security trumps any potential violations of our rights and liberties. Others would argue that protecting our rights and upholding the integrity of our Constitution and Bill of Rights is tantamount to any measure of security.  To give up those rights would in essence mean that the terrorist have won in forcing us to compromise our values.   You can see this debate currently playing out between Republicans such as John McCain and others versus Rand Paul.  There is, perhaps, a balance.  This balance is what the current debate in the Senate is all about.   Last night at midnight, key provisions of the Patriot Act expired.  This includes the bulk collection of metadata. There is, however, legislation to reform the Patriot Act called the USA Freedom Act. The USA Freedom Act amends the Patriot Act to end the bulk collection of metadata on American citizens.  This was not passed over the weekend but likely will be on Tuesday of this week. Beyond the collection of metadata, other programs to be extended include the following: "Those allow for 'roving wiretaps' aimed at terrorism suspects who use multiple disposable cell phones; permit authorities to target 'lone wolf' suspects with no connection to specific terrorist groups, and make it easier to seize personal and business records of suspects and their associates." As CIA Director John Brennan pointed out over the weekend, "Most Americans expect the government to protect them."  I guess the question comes down to whether or not you believe that these programs are, indeed, working in protecting us and are they worth the violation of our rights?