The US Government has refused to give way to critics of the controversial Patriot Act, saying that all the provisions of the act, which is d...

The US Government has refused to give way to critics of the controversial Patriot Act, saying that all the provisions of the act, which is due to expire at the end of this year, must be made permanent. The new attorney-general, Alberto Gonzales, said that new powers given to investigators under the act "have proven to be essential weapons in our arsenal to combat the terrorists, and now is not the time for us to be engaging in unilateral disarmament". However, did add that he would support "technical" modifications to the act to clarify areas that were thought to be vague or open to abuse.