WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today joined in sending a letter to Senate Majority Leader William H. Frist outlining his support for a bi-partisan bill that would provide a three month extension of the expiring provisions of the PATRIOT Act.The PATRIOT Act, approved shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 2001, gave the nations law enforcement agencies increased investigative and surveillance authority to combat terrorist activities.Reed stated, The President and the Republican Leadership in Congress are making a false argument about the PATRIOT Act. The choice is not kill the PATRIOT Act or pass it. There is a better way that gives us the time we need to thoughtfully debate some very important constitutional and civil liberty issues involved in this bill. A 3-month extension of the PATRIOT Act gives Congress the time it needs to carefully debate important matters without being rushed by the need to adjourn for the holidays.Following is the text of the letter:We are writing to let you know of our support of S. 2082, bi-partisan legislation introduced by Senators Sununu and Leahy, that would provide a three month extension of the expiring provisions of the PATRIOT Act and the lone wolf provision of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act in the event the Senate is unable to gain agreement on a conference report to reauthorize these provisions. We sincerely hope that House and Senate negotiators will reach agreement this week on a reauthorization bill that balances the needs of law enforcement with civil liberty protections for innocent Americans. However, if such an agreement cannot be reached before both Houses adjourn this week, federal law enforcement officials should continue to have use of the investigative tools of the PATRIOT Act. A three month extension of the expiring provisions of the PATRIOT Act and the lone wolf provision of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act will accomplish this goal. As you, President Bush, Attorney General Gonzalez and others have emphatically noted in recent days, the PATRIOT Act provides important tools for federal law enforcement officials to investigate and prevent terrorist attacks. Therefore, these law enforcement tools should remain in place should our work on final reauthorization legislation take us into the new year.