I’m not a fan of the Patriot Act, although I’ve never blogged about it before. Since running for office, I’ve tried to keep my eye on what is happening locally and at the state level, with only passing glances at the national level. But this is too big to ignore any longer.
The Senate voted yesterday to kill an amendment to the defense spending authorization bill. The amendment, offered by Senators Udall and Webb, would have removed three sections from the bill. President Obama has threatened a veto of the entire defense spending bill because these three sections are included in the bill.
The troubling sections:
One section authorizes the U.S. military to round up American citizens, and detain them indefinitely. Citizens could be held in a military prison without ever having charges pressed. These individuals could be held because they are simply suspected of being a terrorist. That isn’t a very high burden of proof for putting a citizen into the brig forever. It takes away the citizen’s right to face his/her accuser, hear the charges against him/her, and offer a defense. It gives the authority to the military instead of civilian authorities. Sounds like a third world country to me, instead of a democracy where individual freedom is valued.
Another section requires that civilian authorities transfer to military custody terrorist suspects that meet certain definitions contained in the bill. The final questionable section deals with how Guantanamo detainees are treated after they have been cleared.
The director of the FBI is against these provisions. According to the linked story, “Director Mueller’s opposition to the provision followed similar concerns raised by a growing number of national security experts who have examined the issue, including Department of Defense General Counsel Jeh Johnson, Obama Counterterrorism adviser John Brennan, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and 16 former interrogators and counterterrorism professionals. In addition, yesterday, 26 of the nation’s most respected retired military leaders urged Senators to support the Udall amendment to strip the troubling provisions.”
Homework
Udall Amendment Fails in Senate
Los Angeles Times Article About the Amendments
The Senate voted yesterday to kill an amendment to the defense spending authorization bill. The amendment, offered by Senators Udall and Webb, would have removed three sections from the bill. President Obama has threatened a veto of the entire defense spending bill because these three sections are included in the bill.
The troubling sections:
One section authorizes the U.S. military to round up American citizens, and detain them indefinitely. Citizens could be held in a military prison without ever having charges pressed. These individuals could be held because they are simply suspected of being a terrorist. That isn’t a very high burden of proof for putting a citizen into the brig forever. It takes away the citizen’s right to face his/her accuser, hear the charges against him/her, and offer a defense. It gives the authority to the military instead of civilian authorities. Sounds like a third world country to me, instead of a democracy where individual freedom is valued.
Another section requires that civilian authorities transfer to military custody terrorist suspects that meet certain definitions contained in the bill. The final questionable section deals with how Guantanamo detainees are treated after they have been cleared.
The director of the FBI is against these provisions. According to the linked story, “Director Mueller’s opposition to the provision followed similar concerns raised by a growing number of national security experts who have examined the issue, including Department of Defense General Counsel Jeh Johnson, Obama Counterterrorism adviser John Brennan, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and 16 former interrogators and counterterrorism professionals. In addition, yesterday, 26 of the nation’s most respected retired military leaders urged Senators to support the Udall amendment to strip the troubling provisions.”
Homework
Udall Amendment Fails in Senate
Los Angeles Times Article About the Amendments
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