The Patriot Act of 2001 is a federal law that was passed in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks. It was designed to give the government greater powers to investigate and prevent terrorism. The Patriot Act expanded the government's ability to search telephone, email, and financial records, and to
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The USA PATRIOT Act is a landmark Act of the United States Congress, signed into law by President George W. Bush. The formal name of the statute is the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001, and the commonly used short name is a backronym that is embedded in the name set forth in the statute.