Tester again rejects extension of controversial Patriot Act

(U.S. SENATE) – Senator Jon Tester today released the following statement after voting again to reject an extension of the controversial Patriot Act:

“It’s a shame Congress didn’t get an opportunity to have a full debate this week about this misguided law, which tramples our constitutional rights and invades the privacy of law-abiding Montanans and Americans.  Montanans know this bill was a bad idea from the get-go, and I will always stand up for our rights and freedoms as their senator.”

Tester, an outspoken advocate for constitutional rights, has consistently opposed the Patriot Act.  Tester on Monday told his colleagues that the law “flies in the face of the Fourth Amendment” and “allows the government to conduct secret proceedings, even when those proceedings don’t need to be secret.”