Major legislative threat to civil liberties filed with Senate Judiciary Committee.
What's in a name?
Changing what the government calls its enemies is not a fix for this proposed major over reach of presidential authority. The bill in question could potentially violate the constitutionally protected habeas corpus rights of U.S. citizens. Designating a person suspected of a terrorist act as an "unprivileged enemy belligerent," rather than an enemy combatant makes no difference to the person who might be erroneously and indefinitely held without cause.
Glenn Greenwald is correct to be alarmed. We really need to keep our eyes on this situation. We absolutely cannot trust that the bill will not go anywhere because it is so outrageous.
McCain and Lieberman's "Enemy Belligerent" Act Could Set U.S. on Path to Military Dictatorship
The bill is only 12 pages long, but that is plenty of room to grant the president the power to order the arrest, interrogation, and imprisonment of anyone -- including a U.S. citizen -- indefinitely, on the sole suspicion that he or she is affiliated with terrorism, and on the president's sole authority as commander in chief.
This is a defining characteristic of a military dictatorship. Where's the outrage? And will it come before it's too late?
But what is perhaps most dangerous is the tremendous amount of power it gives to a U.S. president to determine who is and who is not a terrorist.
The
Act has yet to go anywhere -- it has been referred to the Senate Judiciary CommitteeRead more at www.alternet.org
