Tuesday the Bush administration submitted a report to Congress showing how the Patriot Act has been used successfully to prosecute terrorists and other criminals as an effort to counter congressional criticism. Evidence of this criticism can be seen when the House barely rejected a measure last week that would have prevented the use of the section of the law (PL 107-56) that made bookstore and library records available during terrorism investigations. According to Attorney General John Ashcroft, the 29-page report, which outlines case studies of how the law has been enacted, provides “a mountain of evidence” of the law’s benefits. Ashcroft urged Congress to renew the law, which he said had been instrumental in terrorist investigations leading to charges against 310 people, of whom 179 were convicted. Several of its provisions will otherwise expire in 2005. Critics are suspect of the report, pointing out that the administration simply highlighted positive examples while ignoring the many civil rights abuses the law has allowed.