High Noon in the Senate: Patriot Act Cloture Motion Defeated; Debate to Continue

In a stirring victory for advocates of free speech and readers' privacy rights, just after noon today Sen. Bill Frist's (R-TN) attempt to end debate over the USA Patriot Act reauthorization conference report by passing a motion for cloture was defeated. Forty-seven senators voted against the motion, while 52 senators voted in favor. Supporters of the reauthorization conference report needed 60 votes to pass a motion for cloture and to prevent a filibuster that had been threatened by a bipartisan coalition of senators.

"Today's vote to keep open the debate about how best to amend the Patriot Act is good news for proponents of reader privacy," said ABA COO Oren Teicher. "We are absolutely thrilled by the results," he said. "We now are looking forward to a second chance to fully restore the protections for reader privacy. Many, many thanks to all of the booksellers who contacted their senators this week."

With the Senate looking to begin a holiday recess, as of press time, it was not known whether the Patriot Act would be extended for another three to six months, though Frist reported that President Bush would veto any attempt to extend the Act. Sixteen provisions, including Section 215, of the Patriot Act are set to expire on December 31, 2005. Following the vote over cloture, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) sought a short-term extension of the current Patriot Act bill, but Frist objected and asked the Senate to reconsider the vote for cloture.

During the morning's debate, a number of senators who were on the fence over whether to vote in favor of cloture said that a news story in today's New York Times -- which reported that the government authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop without warrants on hundreds to perhaps thousands of people in the U.S. -- did much to sway their votes.

One of those was Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), who acknowledged that, as of last night, he was not sure how to vote. The current report, he said, "is a significant improvement over present law" and "it is a significant improvement over the House bill ... and it comes a lot closer to the Senate bill than many are giving it credit for." But Schumer added: "Today's revelation that the government listened in on thousands of phone conversations without getting a warrant is shocking and has greatly influenced my vote."

Responding to the Times report, Sen. Russell Feingold (D-WI) said, "This body must be absolutely vigilant in our oversight of government powers. I don't want to hear again from the attorney general or anyone on this floor that this government has shown it can be trusted to use the power we give it with restraint and care."

After the vote, Frist rejected a proposal for a limited extension of the Patriot Act put forth by Senate Democrats, and he emphasized that President Bush would veto such a move should it pass both houses of Congress.

Leahy stressed that the day's debate was over how to reconcile two fundamental goals: security versus civil liberties. "It's time we have some checks and balances in this country.... Our goal is to amend the Patriot Act, not end the Patriot Act."

The four Republicans who voted against the motion to end debate were Chuck Hagel (NE), Lisa Murkowski (AK), John Sununu (NH), and Larry Craig (ID). Two Democrats voted to end the filibuster: Tim Johnson (SD) and Ben Nelson (NE). Senate Majority Leader Frist switched his vote from yes to no, a parliamentary move to allow him to seek a new vote later, as reported by the Washington Post. --David Grogan