The Patriot Act and Another Train to Nowhere

Patriot Act

In The Los Angeles Times last week, Jonathan Turley talks about President Obama’s record on civil liberties.

Fellow in Regulatory Studies Ryan Young comments on a new roll-back of provisions of the Patriot Act.

“MSNBC reports that the U.S. Circuit Court struck down two PATRIOT Act provisions dealing with probable cause-less searches. The case centered around Brandon Mayfield, an attorney in Portland, was falsely linked to the 2004 Madrid bombings. Mayfield was arrested and fingerprinted. His fingerprint was falsely matched to a print found in Madrid. After that, the FBI put him “under 24-hour surveillance, listened to his phone calls and surreptitiously searched his home and law office.” This, according to Judge Ann Aiken, crossed the line.”

Train to Nowhere

Sen. Dan Inouye of Hawaii has pushed forward with his dream of a high-speed Honolulu train, despite complaints from Honolulu residents.

Policy Analyst Marc Scribner comments.

“Critics of the multi-billion dollar elevated rail project have noted that it would destroy the views of Honolulu’s famous waterfront, ruin some of Oahu’s best farmland, cost far more than service that could be delivered by bus rapid transit, fail to provide access to major population centers, and fail to address congestion issues. According to the recent “2011 Urban Mobility Report” [PDF] from the Texas Transportation Institute, traffic congestion costs the Honolulu area $287 million per year — putting it at number six among medium-sized metro areas with the most costly congestion problems.”