Gregory D. Lee

Thanks in part to the Patriot Act, the FBI is more proactive in its search for Muslim terrorists operating in this country. The recent arrests of suspected terrorists in Springfield, Illinois, New York City, Dallas and Boston prove the Patriot Act is working to enable the FBI to be more aggressive in its fight against terrorism.

Keeping us safe.

In the case of Husein Smadi, the Dallas wannabe terrorist who strived to blow up a bank building there, the FBI surfed the internet and visited various terrorism related web sites where it found him trying to join the jihad. Prior to 9/11, the FBI was prohibited from doing this.

The FBI learned that the illegal alien from Jordan, who overstayed his U.S. tourist visa, intended to blow up Fountain Place, a 60-story bank office building in downtown Dallas. Instead of condemning Muslims who want to do such horrendous acts, the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) accuses the FBI of entrapment, as if a Muslim would never consider doing such a thing.

Although the details of what led to the other arrests is still unknown, there is a good chance the FBI used similar investigative techniques in these cases, thanks to the Patriot Act, which has been consistently attacked by the left as an instrument of intrusive government. Before the events of 9/11, the CIA could not share its intelligence with the FBI about terrorists traveling to or residing in the U.S. because of policies implemented during the Clinton Administration. Since knocking down the wall between the intelligence and law enforcement communities, arrests like these are happening with more frequency and I predict others will follow.

The Patriot Act allows the free-flow of information between the intelligence and law enforcement communities; but there is no substitute for good, old fashion police work. The recent arrest of U.S. Citizen Tarek Mehanna, the Sudbury, MA man who allegedly conspired with others to obtain automatic weapons to shoot shoppers at a mall, is a good example. The FBI used informants, government travel records, surveillance, and interviewing skills to stop Mehanna before he or his companions could do any harm.

The same holds true during the 1993 World Trade Center bombing investigation when the FBI quickly identified Ramzi Yousef as the mastermind behind the plot. From my personal experience as a DEA special agent who helped arrest Yousef in Islamabad, Pakistan and collected evidence found in his guesthouse room, I can tell you that these people are deadly serious about killing Americans, Europeans and anyone else standing in their way to achieve political and religious goals. Shooting holiday shoppers at a jammed packed shopping mall is only one of many soft targets these people are examining to bring the jihad to U.S. soil.

Fortunately, since 9/11, the FBI’s focus has shifted from its traditional role in bank robberies and white collar crime to terrorism. Because the Patriot Act frees it from ridiculous restrictions, it is now a much more effective investigative force to deal with the likes of Mehanna, Smadi, and Najibullah Zazi, the man who allegedly planned to set explosives at sporting events and New York City transportation nodes.

Congressional Democrats are hard at work diluting the Patriot Act to protect lone-wolf, non-U.S. citizen terrorists and make it easier for them and organized terrorists to know when they are the targets of the FBI. They would like to return to the way it was before 9/11 over concerns of “potential” abuse by the government; yet they cannot point to any intentional abuse since the Act’s enactment.

Tinkering with the Patriot Act in light of recent successes makes no sense; but don’t let that get in the way of Democrats who are hell-bent on weakening national security.

Gregory D. Lee is a retired DEA Supervisory Special Agent who directly participated in the arrest of Ramzi Yousef and has written extensively on terrorism. You can reach him through his web site: www.gregorydlee.com.

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