For Immediate Release:
Friday, June 17, 2005
Contact: Jay Heidbrink
202.741.6273
Today, a bipartisan working group of former senior government officials with expertise in homeland security, intelligence, law enforcement, and civil liberties delivered a set of recommendations for reauthorization of the Patriot Act to lawmakers on Capitol Hill. The bipartisan group, co-convened by John Podesta, President of the Center for American Progress, and Richard Falkenrath, former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, worked for several months to develop recommendations for reauthorizing the expiring provisions of the Patriot Act in a way that preserves civil liberties and safeguards our security. “The combined security, intelligence, law enforcement and civil liberties expertise represented in this group is formidable. While we may hold differing views on particular provisions, we believe that the proposal as a whole represents a reasonable compromise that people on all sides can embrace,” said Podesta.
The members of the bipartisan working group and copy of the letter to lawmakers follows.
A copy of the letter can be viewed here. To view our Patriot Act Resource Guide, please visit http://americanprogress.org/patriotact.
Members of the Bipartisan Group of Former Government Officials
John D. Podesta (co-convenor) is President and CEO of the Center for American Progress. He was Chief of Staff to President William J. Clinton from October 1998 to January 2001. He previously served as Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff (1997-1998) and Assistant to the President, Staff Secretary and a senior policy adviser on government information, privacy, telecommunications security and regulatory policy (1993-1995). He was Counselor to Democratic Leader Senator Thomas A. Daschle (1995-1996); Chief Counsel to the Senate Agriculture Committee (1987-1988); Chief Minority Counsel to the Senate Judiciary Subcommittees on Patents, Copyrights, and Trademarks; Security and Terrorism; and Regulatory Reform; and Counsel on the Majority Staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee (1979-1981). He can be reached at 202-682-1611 or [email protected].
Richard A. Falkenrath (co-convenor) is a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. Until May 2004, he was Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Homeland Security Advisor to President George W. Bush. He served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Homeland Security Advisor from January 2003 until May 2004. Previously, he served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Policy and Plans within the Office of Homeland Security, as Director for Proliferation Strategy on the National Security Council staff, and a member of the Bush-Cheney Transition Team for the National Security Council. He can be reached at [email protected].
Mark D. Agrast is a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. From 1997-2003 he was Counsel and Legislative Director to The Honorable William D. Delahunt of Massachusetts, focusing on civil and constitutional rights, terrorism and civil liberties, and other matters within the jurisdiction of the House Committee on the Judiciary. He can be reached at 202.682.1611 or [email protected].
Bradford A. Berenson is a Partner at Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP and an Adjunct Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He was Associate Counsel to President George W. Bush from 2001-2003. He can be reached at (202) 736-8971 or [email protected].
Bryan Cunningham is a homeland security consultant and a Principal in the Denver-based law firm Morgan & Cunningham LLc= Bryan served as Deputy Legal Adviser to the National Security Council from 2002-2004, Assistant General Counsel at the Central Intelligence Agency 1994-1998, and Trial Attorney and Special Assistant United States Attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice from 1998-2000. He can be reached at 303.743.0003 (office), 720.234.7229 (cell), or [email protected].
James X. Dempsey is the Executive Director of the Center for Democracy and Technology. He served as Staff counsel to the House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Civil and Constitutional Rights, from 1985-1995. He can be reached at 202.365.8026 or [email protected].
John A. Gordon is a retired four-star Air Force general who served as Assistant to the President and Homeland Security Adviser, Deputy National Security Adviser for Combating Terrorism, Undersecretary of Energy and Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, and Deputy Director of Central Intelligence. He can be reached at [email protected].
Eric H. Holder, Jr. is a Partner at Covington & Burling. He was Deputy Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice from 1997-2001. He was United States Attorney for the District of Columbia from 1993-1997 and an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia from 1988-1993. He can be reached at [email protected].
Robert S. Litt is a Partner at Arnold & Porter LLP. He was Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Division at the U.S. Department of Justice from 1994-1997 and Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General from 1997-1999. He can be reached at 202.942.6380 or [email protected].
Andrew C. McCarthy is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. From 1986-2003 he was Assistant United States Attorney (Criminal Division) in the Southern District of New York. He led the 1995 terrorism prosecution of Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman and eleven others. He can be reached at (203) 254-3768 or [email protected].
Joseph N. Onek is Senior Policy Analyst at the Open Society Institute and Senior Counsel and Director of the Liberty and Security Initiative at The Constitution Project. He served as Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice from 1997-1999 and as Senior Coordinator for Rule of Law at the U.S. Department of State from 1999-2001. He was Deputy Counsel to the President from 1979-1981. He can be reached at 202.721.5621 or [email protected].
Paul Rosenzweig is Senior Legal Research Fellow at the Heritage Foundation. He was Senior Litigation Counsel in the Office of the Independent Counsel from 1997-2000 and a Trial Attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice from 1987-1993. He can be reached at 202.608.6190 (office), 202.329.9650 (cell), or [email protected].
Stephen A. Saltzburg is the Wallace and Beverley Woodbury University Professor at George Washington University Law School. He was Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Division at the U.S. Department of Justice from 1988-1989. He can be reached at 202.994.7089 or [email protected].
Suzanne E. Spaulding is Managing Director of The Harbour Group, LLC. She was Assistant General Counsel of the Central Intelligence Agency from 1989-1995, Executive Director of the National Commission on Terrorism (the Bremer Commission) from 1999-2000, and Minority Staff Director of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence from 2003-2004.
James B. Steinberg is Vice President and Director of Foreign Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution. He was Deputy National Security Advisor to President Clinton and held various senior positions at the U.S. Department of State. He can be reached at 202.797-6400 or [email protected].
Ryan P. Stiles was Deputy Counsel to the Homeland Security Council at the White House from 2003-2004. He can be reached at 773-251-2077.