Weeks after the attacks of 9/11, Congress rushed to pass the USA Patriot Act. A few months later, with U.S. forces already deployed in Afghanistan, Congress added the Homeland Security Act.
These are twin acts of cowardice, born of fear and confusion and championed by men who saw their chance to replace freedom with control. They are disaster fascism incarnate. The policies and powers built into these acts have led us directly to bodies on the streets of Minneapolis, planes carrying people into perpetual slavery without trial, and a rogue executive who directs the nation through vengeance and caprice.
It's well past time for these bills, these gutless acts of panicked pseudo-patriotism, to be revoked, and for all the assaults on freedom that they created to be rolled back.
The Patriot Act was scrambled together hurriedly, with agencies throwing in a wish list of new powers that had absolutely nothing to do with the events leading up to the 9/11 attacks. It passed the Senate on a 98-1 vote, with only Democratic Senator Russ Feingold voting against. According to Feingold, the Act contained "very troubling language" that could lead to America becoming a "police state."
Feingold was right. The Patriot Act was a direct assault on 4th Amendment protections. It empowered the government to conduct unrestricted wiretaps without a warrant or notification and it allowed federal agents to enter homes and offices to conduct secret searches. It also enabled the collection and sharing of previously restricted personal information.
But maybe the most terrifying provision was something the ACLU highlighted at the time.
[The Act] creates a new crime of "domestic terrorism." The Patriot Act transforms protesters into terrorists if they engage in conduct that "involves acts dangerous to human life" to "influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion."
Under the act—under the law as it exists today—not only can Kristi Noem use the label of "domestic terrorist" as an excuse for ICE to arrest, beat, or murder observers trying to film their atrocities, but anyone who provides "lodging or assistance" also gets the same label. If you have sent a whistle to Minnesota, provided funds for transportation, or handed out a mug of warm cocoa, you are a potential terrorist under this act.
The disastrous effects of the Patriot Act were supercharged by the ominously named Homeland Security Act. This is the act that created DHS, giving it power over ICE, border patrol, and twenty other agencies.
The Homeland Security Act had critics even on the right, who worried that the structure it was creating not only gave DHS too much power, but created a nightmare of administrative inefficiency. It also weakened government oversight, clamped down on whistleblowers, and made it more difficult to obtain information through the Freedom of Information Act.
But the larger concern was simply that it took immigration issues and assigned them to a new agency focused on national security. Sen. Robert Byrd was among those who cautioned that putting immigration into DHS would lead to "criminalization of immigrants," eliminate humanitarian oversight, and create something very like concentration camps. Despite this, it passed the Senate on a 90-9 vote.
The 9 Democrats who voted against the act were Daniel Akaka, Byrd, Feingold, Ernest Hollings, Daniel Inouye, Ted Kennedy, Carl Levin, and Paul Sarbanes.
Among the Democrats who voted for both bills were Joe Biden, Chuck Schumer, and Hillary Clinton. Those still in office who voted for both acts are: Maria Cantwell, Dick Durbin, Patty Murray, Schumer, and Ron Wyden.
Some of these senators may speak eloquently of fighting against authoritarianism, as Wyden did on Tuesday. Still, when push came to shove, they chose political expediency rather than opposing legislation that they had been warned would lead to a police state and immigrants being treated as criminals.
That's no longer acceptable. Truthfully, it should never have been acceptable. Some provisions of the Patriot Act have been allowed to sunset, including much of the unlimited warrantless wiretapping, but far too much of both bills remains.
For 2026, the priorities of every Democratic candidate should be clear:
- Repeal the Homeland Security Act.
- Rollback the remaining provisions of the Patriot Act.
- Eliminate DHS.
- Abolish ICE.
Every warning that Feingold, Byrd, and others made when this legislation was created almost twenty-five years ago has proved prescient. And if we don't stop this freight train now, it will only get much worse.
Fear drove us to where we are. Only bravery can bring us back. The Democratic Party can't afford any cowards in 2026.
Comments
We want Uncharted Blue to be a welcoming and progressive space.
Before commenting, make sure you've read our Community Guidelines.