EDITORIAL: Keep an eye on Washington D.C. actions — their decisions impact American lives

Posted 7/19/16

Don’t let the name fool you, the bill didn’t really have much to do with anti-terrorism. Instead, it extended the Patriot Act to cover the investigation of domestic, non-terrorism crimes. 

This expansion of the Patriot Act would have …

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EDITORIAL: Keep an eye on Washington D.C. actions — their decisions impact American lives

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Seemingly straight from the pages of George Orwell’s “1984,” the bill  H.R. 5606 — also known as the “Anti-terrorism Information Sharing Is Strength Act” — was introduced to the U.S. House on June 28 and narrowly voted down on July 11. 

Don’t let the name fool you, the bill didn’t really have much to do with anti-terrorism. Instead, it extended the Patriot Act to cover the investigation of domestic, non-terrorism crimes. 

This expansion of the Patriot Act would have bypassed constitutional rights by treating domestic investigations like foreign terrorism investigations. 

A big part of the proposed legislation was a requirement for financial institutions to share information on private transactions with no connection to terrorism. 

Had H.R. 5606 passed, all that would have been needed is “reasonable suspicion,” and the federal government would have been able to force your bank to reveal how much money you are spending and where you spent it — a violation of every American’s Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure. 

While we believe it’s good to use all resources needed to catch criminals or terrorists, we don’t believe it’s worth sacrificing Americans’ constitutional rights. 

H.R. 5606 needed a two-thirds vote for it to pass — and it nearly did, with 229 votes for it and 177 against it. Among those opposed to this unconstitutional move was Wyoming’s Rep. Cynthia Lummis.

Wyoming only has one vote in the House, and we are happy to see that Wyoming’s single vote was cast in a way that had American rights in mind. Considering the divisive nature of the political realm and how negative headlines seem to never end, it is uplifting to see something positive. 

But we question how, and why, this came about. 

The bill was sponsored by Rep. Robert Pittinger, R-North Carolina, with a bipartisan team of 11 co-sponsors. It’s frightening to think that they, and 218 other representatives, felt that H.R. 5606 was a good idea. 

In a press release regarding the bill, Pittinger said the goal was to recognize “the various threats we face enabled through various terrorism financing efforts. Our objective is to enact federal policies to stop the flow of illicit dollars to criminal and terror organizations.”

While we agree that it is important to fight terrorism, doing so at the cost of American liberties is not an acceptable route to take. 

We encourage our politicians to look for solutions that do not infringe on our constitutional rights. At the same time, we urge voters to familiarize themselves with candidates seeking office at all levels, from special districts and City Council on up to the president. 

As the primaries approach, time is of the essence in making an informed vote — which is one of the reasons we will have a free election section available online Aug. 11 to help local voters get to know their candidates. 

Voters wanting a face-to-face conversation with local candidates will have the opportunity to do so at a meet-and-greet on Thursday from 5:30-8 p.m. at The Commons.

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