A User’s Guide to the USA PATRIOT Act and Beyond examines the controversial USA PATRIOT Act, passed by Congress six weeks after the horrific events of September 11, 2001. This new set of American laws gives the federal government broad powers to conduct surveillance on American citizens, in some cases without warrant and without judicial oversight. The book summarizes other programs put into operation to severely curtail the civil liberties of Americans, including a second, more intrusive PATRIOT Act, and other proposed programs and laws that attack privacy, probable cause, due process, and free speech.
The book begins with an overview of the political philosophy of John Locke, with a specific emphasis on Locke’s theory of human rights and its influence on the U.S. Bill of Rights. These political and legal bases are used as touchstones for explaining and evaluating the PATRIOT Act and other related measures being advocated by many federal leaders today. It lists and responds to arguments supporting the PATRIOT Act, and concludes with an essay defending the position that the PATRIOT Act and its successor programs all severely curtail civil liberties.