Patriot Act Defeated?

By Arshad Hasan, Congressional Progressive Caucus Press Release

Late at night, Republicans in Congress attempted to jam a renewal of several of the most controversial provisions of the Patriot Act through the House of Representatives. Since the days of George W. Bush, Republicans and even some Democrats have supported these unconstitutional attacks on our personal liberties that have allowed our own government to spy on Americans without a warrant.

However, this time, the members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus stopped them.

That’s right, progressives in Congress stood strong and their colleagues in the House followed their lead — including most Democrats and even two dozen Republicans. It’s important that — even as the Republicans control the House –  under the leadership of Raul Grijalva and Keith Ellison, Progressive Caucus Members are building coalitions across party lines to get the people’s business done.

Please thank the members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus right now and encourage them to continue to stand strong if Speaker Boehner tries again.

Let me be clear, if the members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus had not fought so hard or showed real leadership, the vote could have easily gone the other way.

Republicans were only seven votes shy of renewal. But the fight is probably not over; Republicans are already vowing to try again.

This is our chance to make sure every member of the Progressive Caucus knows when they stand up and fight, we take notice. When Democrats act like Democrats and defend our personal liberties, we have their back. And perhaps most importantly, if this comes up for a vote again, we’re depending on them to not back down.

After you add your name, we’ll personally deliver your thank you to every Democrat who voted to defeat renewal, so that they know exactly where we stand.

Add your name right now and thank the members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus for standing up.

At Democracy for America, we believe that strong national security does not have to come at the expense of our liberty or our values.

Last night, progressive members of Congress stood up and fought for what we believe. They proved that when they stand strong together for our shared values, their colleagues will follow. They proved that when House Democrats stand united, they can win even though Republicans control the gavel.

Let’s thank them for having the courage to act and ask them to never back down.

– Arshad

Arshad Hasan, Executive Director, Democracy for America, info@democracyforamerica.com