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Balancing Liberty and Security After September 11

NCJ Number
192203
Journal
Janes's Terrorism & Security Monitor Dated: November 2001 Pages: 1-4
Author(s)
Allen Brownfeld
Editor(s)
Afzal Khan
Date Published
2001
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article considers anti-terrorism legislation enacted or considered since the events of September 11, 2001.
Abstract
The new anti-terrorism legislation signed into law on October 26 by President George W. Bush is an attempt to balance the demands of increased security and individual liberties guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Some provisions of the legislation are controversial, with some critics saying it is too liberal and goes too far, others claiming that provisions of the legislation are not restrictive enough. For example, proposed money-laundering rules would, critics argue, penalize countries whose only fault is to have financial privacy laws and low taxes. Rep. Lamar Smith calls for, among other things, strengthened border security, monitoring of persons who enter on temporary tourist, work, or student visas to make sure they depart as expected, prohibiting the granting of asylum to persons who have ties to terrorist organizations, and making it easier to gather evidence on suspected terrorists. In his view, "Non-citizens are not always entitled to the same constitutional rights as citizens."