Another Sequel Worth Missing [and I'm not referring to Godfather III]

Apparently not content with last year's Patriot Act, the U.S. Justice Department is trying to whip up a winning sequel. You remember the Patriot Act , don't you? Ah, those were the days, weren't they? How a year and a half flies when you're enjoying the secrecy of wiretaps, the vigiliance of electronic surveillance, and the protective cloak of a president with the right to declare war on a whim. So, tell us Dr. David Cole, Georgetown University Law professor and author of Terrorism and the Constitution, what can we expect from the sequel?

“[It] raises a lot of serious concerns. It’s troubling that they have gotten this far along and they’ve been telling people there is nothing in the works.” This proposed law, he added, “would radically expand law enforcement and intelligence gathering authorities, reduce or eliminate judicial oversight over surveillance, authorize secret arrests, create a DNA database based on unchecked executive ‘suspicion,’ create new death penalties, and even seek to take American citizenship away from persons who belong to or support disfavored political groups.”

Psh! You sound like a cranky liberal, Dr. Cole, and are obviously exaggerating. I mean, c'mon, judicial oversight is one of the key checks to executive power and legislative procedure, and the due process of law is one of the hallmarks of the democracy that the infidel terrorist despises us for. Surely a president who owes so much to judicial decision already, not to mention one who clearly loves political debate and dissent, surely he wouldn't green light this kind of proposal.

Eh, don't be so sure. Especially note (Atrios and Tom Tomorrow highlight this, too) proposed Section 501, "The Expatriation of Terrorists":

This provision, the drafters say, would establish that an American citizen could be expatriated “if, with the intent to relinquish his nationality, he becomes a member of, or provides material support to, a group that the United Stated has designated as a ‘terrorist organization’.” But whereas a citizen formerly had to state his intent to relinquish his citizenship, the new law affirms that his intent can be “inferred from conduct.” Thus, engaging in the lawful activities of a group designated as a “terrorist organization” by the Attorney General could be presumptive grounds for expatriation. (emphasis mine)

The Matrix sequel be damned! I can't wait for the previews of this mother to start hitting the screen! I really hope, though, that a subtitle is included before they do, like Patriot II: "The Electric Boogaloo" (thus implying America's diligence), or "The Roof, the Roof, the Roof is on Fire" (thus implying America's sense of danger -- this, by the way, is far more effective, for me anyway, than just the color orange), or "We Gonna Get You Sucka" (thus implying America's resolve), or anything with an appropriate amount of jive to it. A little jive goes a long way.