Also currently nurturing the spirit of our heritage of independence and privacy is Steven Lilienthal, director of the Center for Privacy and Technology Policy at the Free Congress Foundation. He regularly sends me valuable news of present and prospective violations of privacy by government and other entities.

Writing in support of "constant review" of Patriot Act powers, Mr. Lilienthal emphasizes: "Many conservatives understand full well how future policymakers can take laws intended for an important reason -- combating terrorism -- and try applying those powers to other areas. Not only should the existing sunsets (clauses in the Patriot Act) be retained, they should be added to such far-reaching powers as the Section 213 delayed notification searches ('sneak and peek') that short-circuit the Fourth Amendment because (those powers) extend well beyond fighting terrorism." The Justice Department recently conceded that 88 percent of Section 213 search warrants have been executed in non-terrorism cases.