Original sentence: Ashcroft became controversial (with approval of traditional conservatives and disapproval of libertarians and liberals) as a prominent advocate of post 9-11 security measures that allowed more government surveillance
Edited sentence: Ashcroft defended the program as a necessary component of the ongoing War on Terrorism, but the proposal was eventually abandoned.Ashcroft was responsible for draft legislation - the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003, which proposed to greatly expand the powers of the U.Ashcroft's positions on privacy and civil liberties issues made him an extremely disliked figure by libertarian, left-wing and liberal groups.Critics said this was an attempt to distract attention from a drop in the approval ratings of President Bush, who was campaigning for re-election.Examples cited include:.Groups opposed to the Bush administration often mentioned him as epitomizing all the reasons for their opposition.In July 2002, Ashcroft proposed the creation of Operation TIPS, a domestic program in which workers and government employees would inform law enforcement agencies about suspicious behavior they encounter while performing their duties.On May 26, 2004, Ashcroft held a news conference at which he said that intelligence from multiple sources indicated that al Qaeda intended to attack the United States in the coming months.Opponents claimed that Ashcroft used the threat of terrorism to further political goals.Some of his most prominent critics were organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union and pro-choice groups.The bill was leaked and posted to the Internet on February 7, 2003.The program was criticized in the media as an encroachment upon the First and Fourth Amendments, and the United States Postal Service balked at the program, refusing outright to participate.government to fight crime and terrorism, while simultaneously eliminating or curtailing judicial review of these powers for incidents involving domestic terrorism