your “rights” are only what he chooses them to be
May 27th, 2008 |AP:
Government lawyers told federal judges that the president can send the military into any U.S. neighborhood, capture a citizen and hold him in prison without charge, indefinitely.
There is little middle ground between the two sides in al-Marri’s case, which is before a federal appeals court in Virginia. The government says the president needs this power to keep the nation safe. Al-Marri’s lawyers say that as long as the president can detain anyone he wants, nobody is safe.
Land of the free…as long as the government allows you to be free.
2 Responses to “your “rights” are only what he chooses them to be”
Chilling.
I’m uneasy on this one. On one side, the Constitution does allow for suspension of habeas corpus in the case of insurrection or actual invasion, and we are fighting a war–declared or not. Lincoln caught hell for taking advantage of this in the War Between the States.
On the other hand…the argument that we’re being invaded at this point is tenuous, IMO, and boy is it a lot to trust on this. I would have to suggest that the proper application for suspension of habeas corpus is when the situation is so dire, that waiting for an ordinary trial is impractical.