Reaction Of Sen. Patrick Leahy,
Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee,
On The Inspector General’s Report
On The Use Of National Security Letters
March 9, 2007

“National Security Letters are a powerful tool, and when they are misused they can do great harm to innocent people.  The government expects Americans to follow the law, but the American people also have a right to expect that the government follows the law. 

“These improper and illegal violations might all be continuing if it were not for the sunshine provisions about the use of NSLs that we insisted on adding to the PATRIOT Act.  I intend for the Senate Judiciary Committee to conduct extensive hearings on these findings, their significance and possible remedies in our ongoing oversight efforts, including at a hearing with the FBI Director later this month.”

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