Failing to act on the Patriot Act will have bad implications on national security, Attorney General Loretta Lynch warned Wednesday.
“Without action from the U.S. Senate, we will experience a serious lapse in our ability to protect the American people,” she said at a press conference at the Justice Department.
“I am deeply committed to ensuring that this nation protects the civil liberties of every American while also keeping our country safe and secure,” Lynch added. “Unfortunately, some of the vital and uncontroversial tools we use to combat terrorism and crime are scheduled to shut down on Sunday.”
Certain provisions of the Patriot Act are set to expire at the end of the month, including one that allows the NSA to collect millions of Americans’ phone records. Lawmakers have been unable to agree on which provisions to reauthorize or let expire.
One, which allows the government to target terrorists through disposable “burner” cellphones, is instrumental in stopping attacks, Lynch said.
Tapping burner phones is something seen “in every investigation I have ever done as a prosecutor, be it criminal or national security,” Lynch said.
“We now have the ability to go to the [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] Court and obtain an order with probable cause to track a terrorist who does that,” she added. “That provision will expire.”
The Obama administration has been pushing the Senate to pass a reform bill that the House has already passed. The USA Freedom Act bill would renew three expiring provisions of the Patriot Act, while ending authorization of the NSA to collect Americans’ phone records.
