In the 32 years since I first came to the Senate -- during the era of Watergate and Vietnam -- I have never seen a time when our Constitution and fundamental rights as Americans were more threatened by their own government," Leahy told his committee last week. "Just this last weekend, the president and vice president indicated that they intended to override the will of the American people as expressed in the most recent national elections and ignore actions of Congress in order to escalate the war in Iraq. This administration has circumvented express congressional prohibitions on creating databanks of information on law-abiding Americans over the last five years.

the Fifth Amendment guarantee of due process is at risk, because Americans have no way of knowing what information is being collected, and lack recourse to correct wrongful claims.

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