The Other "Junior Senator from Wisconsin"

And by that I mean the one in favor of civil liberties...
Senator Russ Feingold is this week's guest blogger on TPMCafe, providing us with the latest on the PATRIOT Act.

"The current betting is that the House will take up the Patriot Act conference report tomorrow (Wednesday). If it passes, it will then come to the Senate, and a vote to cut off debate - i.e., prevent a filibuster -- is likely to take place Friday morning. So that's the key vote in the Senate. Now is the time to contact your Senators..."

And, then, there are the "No Free Speech Zones"
Meanwhile, the ACLU came out against a new provision that gives Secret Service additional leeway to restrict people (read: protesters) from events "of national significance," even without the presence of a high ranking official at the event. Failure to comply could result in a six month to one year prison sentence. Here's the article from the Washington Post, in which Specter is quoted as being "a little surprised at the concern" about the heightened secuirty measures.

"Just closing a loophole," Specter's office says. What would that have meant for PA's Smoketown Six? I guess we didn't need that pesky free speech anyway...