美国有线新闻 CNN 2015-05-28

 Next today, we're reporting on the Patriot¹ Act. This is a U.S. government program that expanded the powers of America's intelligence and law enforcement agencies. The goal: to prevent terrorism.  

 

The Patriot Act is controversial. Supporters say it's critical to America's national security. Opponents say parts of it go too far, threatening Americans' privacy. It expires on June 1st. The House of Representatives has passed a bill that keep in place and President Obama has pushed for the program to be renewed. But its extension was blocked in the Senate on Saturday. And if the Senate doesn't pass it on May 31st, the law could expire.

 

It took just one month after the events of 9-11 for the Patriot Act to zoom³ through Congress and get signed into law by President George W. Bush, giving law enforcement and intelligence agencies sweeping⁴ powers to thwart⁵ terrorist plots.

 

"It will improve our nation's security, while we safeguard the civil liberties of our people."

 

It would do much more. Americans didn't know it at that time, but the law would give the NSA access to the private information of millions of U.S. citizens.

 

I think it's unconstitutional. The courts have not held that, but I think this is exactly why the Constitution and the Fourth Amendment⁶ was written to prevent that.

 

But it was former NSA contractor⁷ Edward Snowden who blew the debate wide open in 2013, when he leaked a trove² of classified documents that revealed the extent of the NSA's dragnet surveillance programs.

 

Under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, the NSA collects cellphone data on every single cellphone in America.

 

Who you called, when you called, what phone number you called from, what phone number you called, how long you were on the phone.

 

You can take pieces of information and piece together a lot of information about somebody.

 

They can discern their age, their sex, their religion, their level of political activity, their political leanings and so forth⁸.

 

They can know, for example, whether an American called a psychiatrist⁹ three times in 36 hours twice after midnight. That is a lot of private information.

 

How does it work? By petitioning a secret court known as FISA, the NSA can access the records of large phone companies such as Verizon. Revelations sparked public outrage¹⁰, setting off efforts to rein¹¹ in the government's broad power.

 

When I asked that one of our rare open sessions, whether the government collected any type of data at all, the director answered falsely.

 

Does the NSA collect any type of data at all, on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans?

 

No, sir. It does not. Not wittingly.

 

President Obama pledged to reform the agency but has stopped short of ending the NSA's collection of bulk data.  

 

And for our intelligence community to be effective over the long haul, we must maintain the trust of the American people and people around the world.

 

Instead, he passed the buck¹² to Congress, where reform efforts are stalling. The House overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan reform bill, but Senate opponents are citing terror threats to keep the Patriot Act intact.

 

The expiring provisions of FISA are ideally suited for the terrorist threat we face in 2015.

 

That's despite the fact that multiple reviews haven't found any instance where that program alone thwarted¹³ a terror plot.

 

For now, the tug-of-war between national security and civil liberties continues.

1 patriot   

n.爱国者，爱国主义者

参考例句：

• He avowed himself a patriot.他自称自己是爱国者。
• He is a patriot who has won the admiration of the French already.他是一个已经赢得法国人敬仰的爱国者。

2 trove   

n.被发现的东西，收藏的东西

参考例句：

• He assembled a rich trove of Chinese porcelain.他收集了一批中国瓷器。
• The gallery is a treasure trove of medieval art.这个画廊是中世纪艺术的宝库。

3 zoom   

n.急速上升；v.突然扩大，急速上升

参考例句：

• The airplane's zoom carried it above the clouds.飞机的陡直上升使它飞到云层之上。
• I live near an airport and the zoom of passing planes can be heard night and day.我住在一个飞机场附近，昼夜都能听到飞机飞过的嗡嗡声。

4 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

5 thwart   

v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的)

参考例句：

• We must thwart his malevolent schemes.我们决不能让他的恶毒阴谋得逞。
• I don't think that will thwart our purposes.我认为那不会使我们的目的受到挫折。

6 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

7 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

8 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

9 psychiatrist   

n.精神病专家；精神病医师

参考例句：

• He went to a psychiatrist about his compulsive gambling.他去看精神科医生治疗不能自拔的赌瘾。
• The psychiatrist corrected him gently.精神病医师彬彬有礼地纠正他。

10 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

11 rein   

n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治

参考例句：

• The horse answered to the slightest pull on the rein.只要缰绳轻轻一拉,马就作出反应。
• He never drew rein for a moment till he reached the river.他一刻不停地一直跑到河边。

12 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。

13 thwarted   

阻挠( thwart的过去式和过去分词 )； 使受挫折； 挫败； 横过

参考例句：

• The guards thwarted his attempt to escape from prison. 警卫阻扰了他越狱的企图。
• Our plans for a picnic were thwarted by the rain. 我们的野餐计划因雨受挫。