The House's attempt to fast-track a three-year extension of key provisions of the Patriot Act failed to pass on Tuesday, falling just seven votes shy. The measure would have allowed the FBI to continue to use roving wiretaps and access "any tangible items" — such as library records — in their efforts to identify terrorists. The extension will likely be resurrected again before month's end, and find its way to the Senate. Still, Tea Party-backed politicians have signaled their opposition, and liberal Democrat Dennis Kucinich had said last night's vote would be "the Tea Party's first test." In the end, 26 House Republicans voted against the measure. Was the Tea Party responsible for its failure? (Watch an AP report about the vote)
Yes. It was a show of Tea Party power: Last night's vote was the "first real hint that the grass-roots movement can complicate GOP unity," says Patrick Jonsson at the Christian Science Monitor. The Republicans' failure to pass the extension shows how "elements of the GOP at odds with party orthodoxy have been augmented and emboldened by the Tea Party success last November." The "calculus on Capitol Hill" is changing.
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