Associate Professor of Government Robert Martin spoke about a proposed extension of some of the provisions of the Patriot Act in the face of growing concerns over home-grown terrorism in an article titled “Why is Patriot Act under fire if homegrown terror threat is rising?” in The Christian Science Monitor. The article appeared in the international newspaper, published daily online and weekly in print, on Feb. 10.
Martin surmised that Tea Party debates about government overreach have sparked recent discussions over certain Patriot Act provisions. He said, "If there is rethinking of some of the more strenuous provisions of the Patriot Act, it well may be part of a tendency [in American society] to limit civil liberties in the name of national security and then years later regretting that or at least rethinking it and wondering if we've gone too far.” Martin is working on a book titled Government by Dissent.
