Feingold Marks Second Anniversary of the PATRIOT Act Feingold Was the Only Member of the U.S. Senate to Vote Against the PATRIOT Act in October 2001 October 22, 2003 Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) today, from the floor of the U.S. Senate, marked the second anniversary of the USA PATRIOT Act being signed into law by discussing the growing bipartisan concern about some of its provisions. In October 2001, Feingold was the only member of the U.S. Senate to oppose the passage of the PATRIOT Act, and since then, many members of Congress from both sides of the aisle have joined in his fight to fix problems with the Act that he originally identified. Most recently, Feingold, along with Senators Larry Craig (R-ID), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mike Crapo (R-ID), John Sununu (R-NH) and others, introduced the Security and Freedom Ensured (SAFE) Act. The SAFE Act seeks to amend several particularly controversial provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act. Below are some excerpts from his speech. A copy of his entire remarks is available upon request. "...As our nation faces new terrorist threats, we must respond to those threats without compromising the civil liberties that are the bedrock of our country. We must balance the legitimate needs of law enforcement against the privacy and freedom of all Americans. ...This is not an easy task. But one thing I know -- the solution is not simply to grant the federal government more and more power to conduct surveillance, eavesdrop, and collect information on law-abiding Americans. ...The burden is on the Administration to show Congress and the American people why current law is inadequate, why it needs even more power, and how the powers it already has and the new powers it seeks are consistent with the Constitution and Bill of Rights. That...would be the patriotic thing to do."

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