Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Ashcroft touts Patriot Act's virtues

Broad spectrum of protesters vilify attorney general

U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft, flanked by Nevada law enforcement officials inside the Lloyd George U.S. Courthouse, praises the Patriot Act, saying, "We are winning the war on terror." Photo by Amy Beth Bennett. Protesters Lyla Bartholomae, left, Ardiss Coffman and Jane Feldman stand outside in the rain and object to the law they contend strips people of their civil liberties. Photo by Amy Beth Bennett.

U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft praised more than 250 local law enforcement officials Tuesday in a downtown speech, telling them, "Thanks to you, we are winning the war on terror."

Outside the Lloyd George U.S. Courthouse, about 25 protesters braved a rainstorm and compared Ashcroft and the Bush administration to some of history's most evil figures.

Inside and outside, the subject was the Patriot Act, the law quickly passed after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The act expanded the ability of federal authorities to apply legal measures already used against organized crime and drugs to also fight terrorism. Such measures include the execution of search warrants without immediately notifying targets.

Inside the courthouse, the Patriot Act was praised as a necessary weapon to combat terrorism.

Outside, on Las Vegas Boulevard, an unusual coalition of organizations with philosophical bents ranging from the far left to the far right said the Patriot Act strips people of their civil liberties.

From the left, James Tate of the Coalition to Prevent the Erosion of Human Rights, said, "The biggest threat of terrorism is at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue ... Osama bin Bush."

From the right, Chris Hansen of the Nevada Eagle Forum said, "The Patriot Act makes disagreeing with the government a crime. This is the type of law that Hitler and Stalin loved."

Ashcroft is on a 16-city tour promoting the Patriot Act. In his 30-minute speech, he quoted Presidents Thomas Jefferson, George W. Bush and Abraham Lincoln to make his point: The act gives law enforcement the tools "to save innocent American lives."

The instruments he touted:

• Delaying notification to targets of search warrants, allowing agents to investigate without tipping off suspects.

• Allowing access to suspected terrorists' business records.

• Permitting "roving wiretaps," allowing a wiretap to continue when a terrorism suspect switches phones.

• Improving information sharing between federal, state and local agencies.

Ashcroft noted that both Nevada senators, Democrat Harry Reid and Republican John Ensign, voted for the Patriot Act.

Except for a hypothetical example of a terrorist act, which he set in Las Vegas, the senators' votes were Ashcroft's only reference to Nevada.

Ashcroft's speech was interrupted with applause twice for identical language. Each time he declared, "We are winning the war on terror." He received a standing ovation at the speech's conclusion.

Dan Bogden, Nevada's U.S. attorney, said the act has proven effective. Without noting specific instances, he said, "We have done some roving wiretaps. ... This allows us the ability to follow someone from state to state in order to pick up their communications. Again, all these things are done through court orders."

Without the Patriot Act legal tools, Bogden said, "The consequences are too great to think about."

Ellen Knowlton, the FBI's special agent in charge of the Las Vegas office, agreed.

"The capabilities have always been there on the criminal side. It's not anything new. There's some confusion and misconception" about the act, she said. "It doesn't give us expanded powers, it gives us the ability to use existing powers on terrorism investigations. It makes sense, doesn't it?"

Her advice to the protesters: "Read the Patriot Act. Of course, everything is subject to interpretation."

Protester Glenn Pfeifer, 66, said he doesn't agree with many of the political philosophies espoused at the protest, "but on the Patriot Act, we all agree," he said. "If you look at what the government did right after 9-11, they took 1,000 people into custody and very few have been charged with anything other than immigration violations. They overstepped their authority."

His wife, Clara Hill-Pfeifer, held a sign that said simply: "We can be both safe and free."

The various groups involved also included the Alliance for Workers Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union, Nevada Attorneys for Criminal Justice, Citizens Alert, the Nevada Republican Liberty Caucus, the Nevada Eagle Forum, the Alliance for Workers Rights, the National Alliance Against Racists and Political Oppression, the NAACP, the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada and the Independent American Party of Nevada.

Ashcroft's speech was closed to the public. His 90-minute visit included his 30-minute speech, 10 minutes with federal judges and a series of three-minute interviews with local television news stations.

Ashcroft declined to answer any questions from reporters with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, The Associated Press or the Las Vegas Sun. Ashcroft's spokesman, Blair Rethmeier, said newspapers wouldn't be allowed to question his boss because of a "tight schedule." However, he said Ashcroft commonly gives television reporters quick interviews and rejects newspaper interviews.

Ashcroft returned to Washington, D.C., via a government jet after leaving Las Vegas.

The attorney general most recently visited Las Vegas in May 2002 and gave a speech about law enforcement cooperation, followed by a news conference where he answered four questions.