This morning, House Judiciary Chairman James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-WI)

<http://www.house.gov/sensenbrenner/contact.htm> unilaterally and

arbitrarily shut down committee hearings on the reauthorization of the

Patriot Act without comment or issuing a statement. Sensenbrenner

gaveled the committee hearings in the middle of witnesses testifying

about human and civil rights abuses at Guantanamo Bay, racial profiling

of individuals of Middle Eastern descent, prolonged detentions of

Americans after September 11th and other abuses.

The suppression of free speech and testimony in the congressional

committee in charge of protecting our civil liberties shows the

Republican's power grab has no limits and no decency. The irony was not

lost on anyone.

The witnesses appearing before the House Judiciary Committee included,

Chip Pitts, Chair of the Board of Amnesty International USA; Dr. James

J. Zogby, President of the Arab American Institute; Deborah Pearlstein,

Director of the U.S. Law and Security Program "Human Rights First"; and

Carlina Tapia Ruano of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

The witnesses were called by the indomitable Rep. John Conyers, Jr.

(D-MI) <http://www.house.gov/conyers> who continues to stand up to the

right-wing's attempt to eviscerate American Constitutional liberties.

"There are few issues that are more important to this Committee or this

Congress than the Patriot Act and the war against terror. This not only

affects the rights and privacy of every American, but impacts the extent

to which our nation is able to hold itself out as a beacon of liberty as

we advocate for democracy around the world," said Congressman Conyers as

he opened the committee hearings.

Sixteen provisions in the USA Patriot Act are expiring because Rep.

Conyers fought for sunset provisions to keep the erosion of civil

liberties from becoming permanent when the Patriot Act was first

introduced in the fervor following September 11th. Now the Bush

administration is seeking to not only reauthorize but expand the reach

and power of the Patriot Act, such as giving the FBI the ability to

issue secret wire taps and conduct searches without warrants approved by

a federal judge. A policy tantamount to creating a secret police force

above the rule of law.

"Rather than making us safer, the abuses and excesses of our war against

terrorism are actually tarnishing our nation's reputation and making us

less safe," said Conyers.

Chip Pitts of Amnesty International USA in his written statement to be

addressed to the House Judiciary Committee - before Sensenbrenner

effectively muzzled him and other witnesses - observed that the Patriot

Act has a "chilling affect on freedom." Pitts added "the law jeopardizes

due process and fair trial procedures by encouraging a presumption of

guilt until proven innocent. ...The Patriot Act is of concern both in

itself, and also because it has inspired a significant cascade of

similar legislation around the world that weakens the rule of law which

is so essential to the protection of human rights."

The overarching fear with expanding the Patriot Act is the lack of

oversight given to judges, the denial of due process to American

citizens such as keeping detainees from the right to see a lawyer, and

the broad discretion given to police and homeland security officials in

the Bush administration. You can be labeled a suspected terrorist, if

not presumed guilty, if the Bush administration says you are. The

secretive Busheviks appear more interested in obtaining Stalin-like

police powers than in protecting Americans from terrorism.

Sensenbrenner's Soviet-style tactic of gaveling a meeting to end it

because he didnt like what he heard about the Bushevik abuses of our

civil liberties is a horrifying example of what America faces if the GOP

one-party state is given expanded police powers to invade the rights of

Americans.

"The governments that are most effective in safeguarding human security

are those that operate strictly under the rule of law: that is, under a

system in which people are governed by public laws that are set in

advance, applied equally in all cases," said Deborah Pearlstein,

Director, U.S. Law and Security Program who was called to testify.

The Bush administration has routinely flouted the rule of law since

September 11th claiming the need for broad police powers to protect

security and prevent terrorism. But the Bush administration as well as

Department of Justice and Homeland Security officials have been

routinely discredited and rebuked for their actions. They have

repeatedly initiated arrests and invasions of privacy for public

relations purposes, only to drop charges later.

In short, many Americans and organizations just don't trust the Bush

administration, and rightly so after a systematic pattern of abuse and

erosion of the Constitution. The Busheviks are clearly using the fear of

terrorism as a means to consolidate dictatorship like powers.

What member of Congress in their right mind could possibly consider

giving more power to an Administration that endorses torture and

indefinite detentions?

Democracies do not fail overnight. They slowly erode and descend by

denying rights to the minority, the takeover of an independent

judiciary, suppressing speech and assembly, and the rise of secrecy and

repressive police powers in the executive branch.

Sensenbrenner's belligerent act to shut down dissent and gag witnesses

warning about the broad police powers given to the administration should

give Americans pause as the Republican Party inches closer and closer to

turning American into a one-party state.

The witnesses to the Bushevik violations of our Constitution, civil

liberties, and individual rights valiantly continued to speak after

Sensenbrenner formally shut down the hearing (probably as a result of a

phone call from the White House). But their voices were hardly heard,

which was the objective of the Busheviks.

What makes the barbarians in the White House shudder most is a bright

light of truth reaching the American public.

They have been unusually successful in intimidating the media into

enabling their lies. Now, they are just preemptively breaking laws and

the rules of Congress to suppress the truth.

It can happen here, and it is."