On Indefinite Detention: The Tyranny Continues

Tuesday, May 22, 2012 – by Ron Paul

Supporters of the one amendment that passed on this matter were
hoping no one would notice that it did absolutely nothing. The amendment
essentially stated that those entitled to habeas corpus protections are
hereby granted habeas corpus protections. Thanks for nothing!

As Steve Vladeck, of American University’s law school, wrote of this amendment:
“[T]he Gohmert Amendment does nothing whatsoever to address the
central objections…. [I]t merely provides by statute a remedy that is
already available to individuals detained within the United States; and
says nothing about the circumstances in which individuals might actually
be subject to military detention when arrested within the territory of
United States…. Anyone within the United States who was subject to
military detention before the FY2013 NDAA would be subject to it
afterwards, as well…”
Actually, the amendment in question makes matters worse, as it states
that anyone detained on US soil has the right to file a writ of habeas
corpus “within 30 days” of arrest. In fact, persons detained on US soil
already have the right to file a habeas petition immediately upon
arrest!

I co-sponsored an amendment offered by Reps. Adam Smith
and Justin Amash that would have repealed the unconstitutional
provisions of last year’s NDAA by eliminating Section 1022 on mandatory
military detention and modifying Section 1021 to make it absolutely
clear that no one can be apprehended on US soil and held indefinitely
without trial or be held subject to a military tribunal. Our language
was clear: “No person detained, captured, or arrested in the United
States, or a territory or possession of the United States, may be
transferred to the custody of the Armed Forces for detention under the
Authorization for Use of Military Force, this Act, or the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013.”

The term “person” is key in our amendment, as our Founders did not
make a distinction between citizens and non-citizens when determining
who was entitled to Constitutional protections. As the father of the
Constitution James Madison wrote, “[I]t does not follow, because aliens
are not parties to the Constitution, as citizens are parties to it, that
whilst they actually conform to it, they have no right to its
protection.”

We should not forget that our Article III court system is a strength
not a weakness. The right to face our accuser, the protections against
hearsay evidence, the right to a jury trial – these are designed to
protect the innocent and to determine and then punish guilt. And they
have been quite successful thus far. Currently there are more than 300
individuals who have been tried and convicted of terrorism-related
charges serving lengthy terms in US federal prisons. Each of the six
individuals tried in US civilian courts for the 1993 bombing of the
World Trade Center are serving hundreds of years in prison, for example.

Last week was discouraging and disappointing to those of us who value
our Constitution. That the US government asserts the legal authority to
pick up Americans within the United States and hold them indefinitely
and secretly without a trial should be incredibly disturbing to all of
us. Americans should check how their representative voted. Politicians
should not be allowed to get away with undermining our liberties in this
manner.

http://www.thedailybell.com/3909/Ron-Paul-On-Indefinite-Detention-The-Tyranny-Continues