The Patriot Act Is a Vital Weapon in Fighting Terrorism

Nathan A. Sales is a law professor at George Mason University School of Law. He previously served at the Justice Department, where he helped write the Patriot Act, and was deputy assistant secretary of homeland security.

UPDATED MAY 23, 2014, 10:40 AM

America needs the Patriot Act because it helps prevent terrorism while posing little risk to civil liberties. The law simply lets counterterrorism agents use tools that police officers have used for decades. And it contains elaborate safeguards against abuse.

Consider the three provisions Congress renewed last May.

1. Congress authorized “roving wiretaps” back in 1986 -- court orders that allow police to monitor criminals even if they switch phones. The Patriot Act allows the same thing in terrorism investigations. The law levels the playing field: If a roving wiretap is good enough for Tony Soprano, it’s good enough for Mohamed Atta.

The Patriot Act features strict safeguards. Agents can’t eavesdrop unless they get a judge’s permission. They must demonstrate that the suspect is a terrorist. And they must notify the judge when they go up on a new phone.

2. Grand juries in criminal cases routinely subpoena “business records” from companies like banks and retailers. The Patriot Act lets counterterrorism agents get the same documents.

The law simply lets counterterrorism agents use tools that police officers have used for decades.

The act’s protections are even stronger than the grand jury rules. Prosecutors issue subpoenas unilaterally, but the Patriot Act requires the F.B.I. to get a judge’s approval. Americans can’t be investigated on the basis of First Amendment activities, and special limits apply to sensitive materials like medical or library records.

3. Before 9/11, it was difficult for authorities to monitor “lone wolves” with murky ties to overseas terrorist groups. The F.B.I. suspected that Zacarias Moussaoui was a terrorist, but agents hadn’t connected him to Al Qaeda, so it wasn’t clear they could search his apartment. Congress fixed that problem. Now, agents can monitor a terrorist even if they haven’t yet found evidence he belongs to a foreign terrorist organization.

Again, the Patriot Act has robust safeguards. Agents have to convince a judge to let them track a lone wolf. This tool can only be used to investigate international terrorism, not domestic. And it doesn’t apply to Americans, only to temporary visitors like tourists.

A decade after 9/11, the Patriot Act remains a vital weapon in the war on terrorism. Al Qaeda hasn’t given up. Neither should we.