Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley of Iowa released the following statement after the Senate did not reach agreement on reauthorizing and reforming expiring provisions of the Patriot Act.
“These authorities need to be reauthorized and reformed in a way that appropriately balances national security with the privacy and civil liberties of all Americans. I’m hopeful that when we return we can come to an agreement that will address the core reform goals of the American people while protecting national security.
“If these important national security tools were to expire, there’s little doubt the country would be in a greater risk of a terrorist attack. However, it’s abundantly clear that we also need reform to the program, including ending the indiscriminate collection of telephone metadata in bulk under Section 215.
“Our focus when we return must be to craft legislation that can clear both the House and the Senate that keeps the tools in place needed to protect the American people while also ensuring their civil liberties are intact.”
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