madam speaker , with the patriot act set to expire at the end of the year , congress has once again missed an opportunity to narrow and tighten the legislation.i opposed the original patriot act , as it was rushed into law in the wake of 9/11 , and i strongly oppose the current conference report .  the conference report tries to appease both sides of the debate by extending sunsets on the two most controversial provisions , library records and `` roving '' wiretaps , while making 14 of the existing 16 provisions permanent thus limiting congress ' ability to exercise checks and balances .  this is a step backwards .  but for the existing sunset provisions , we would not have been exercising our oversight function for this sensitive area .  it puts the administration on too long of a leash and does not force congress to review and modify the act as needed .  we can keep america safe without compromising our civil liberties .  