Despite criticism and arguments which found the Patriot Act unconstitutional or otherwise incompatible with the American principle of freedom for its citizens, the administration of President Barack Obama and the Patriot Act were found, in the first half of the President’s administration, to be as yet unopposed.
In this regard, the people who had made the arguments that found the Patriot Act unconstitutional were disappointed that President Obama and the Patriot Act did not prove to be more opposed to each other. Moreover, such concerns were related to the past history of President Obama and the Patriot Act, in that the President, during his tenure as an Illinois Senator in the George W. Bush-era Congress, had made the argument that found the Patriot Act unconstitutional.
The past record of Obama and the Patriot Act derived from the common contention that the legislative package, initially drafted and passed soon after the September 11, 2001, gave over too many powers to the government and allowed it too much leeway in violating the civil liberties of American citizens. For this reason, the news, released on March 1, 2010, that the President had signed a Congressional extension of some sections of the legislation aroused criticism from the American center-left spectrum, formerly noted as a key area of support for the President.
In this regard, those who had long made the arguments which found the Patriot Act unconstitutional pointed the Obama and the Patriot Act record to criticize the President for inconsistency and failing to act on earlier words.