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President Obama, Veto the National Defense Authorization Act
CCR urges President Obama to veto the NDAA. If he doesn't, he will bear the blame for making indefinite military detention without trial a permanent feature of the U.S. legal system. He will be responsible for signing into law one of the greatest expansions of executive power in our nation's history, allowing the government to lock up citizens and non-citizens without the right to fair trial. Indefinite detention is contrary to the most fundamental principles of the rule of law.
Dec 13, 2011
CCR urges President Obama to veto the NDAA. If he doesn't, he will bear the blame for making indefinite military detention without trial a permanent feature of the U.S. legal system. He will be responsible for signing into law one of the greatest expansions of executive power in our nation's history, allowing the government to lock up citizens and non-citizens without the right to fair trial. Indefinite detention is contrary to the most fundamental principles of the rule of law.
The NDAA would essentially prevent President Obama from bringing men from Guantanamo to the U.S. for trial and severely curtail his ability to resettle them in third countries. More than half of the men currently detained at Guantanamo - 89 of the 171 - have been unanimously cleared by the CIA, FBI, NSC and Defense Department for transfer or release. Yet no one has been transferred since last January, when Congress created restrictions similar to those in the NDAA. This marks the longest period without a transfer in the prison camp's entire 10-year history and only underscores the president's broken promise and failure to close Guantanamo.
As Obama himself, along with President Bush and NDAA co-sponsor Senator John McCain, acknowledged during the presidential campaign, Guantanamo's very existence makes us less safe. Indeed, Guantanamo, Obama's forever prison, has become a global symbol of human rights violations by a country that claims to be the world leader of freedom.
Are these the legacies Obama, the one-time professor of constitutional law, wants for his presidency?
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
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CCR urges President Obama to veto the NDAA. If he doesn't, he will bear the blame for making indefinite military detention without trial a permanent feature of the U.S. legal system. He will be responsible for signing into law one of the greatest expansions of executive power in our nation's history, allowing the government to lock up citizens and non-citizens without the right to fair trial. Indefinite detention is contrary to the most fundamental principles of the rule of law.
The NDAA would essentially prevent President Obama from bringing men from Guantanamo to the U.S. for trial and severely curtail his ability to resettle them in third countries. More than half of the men currently detained at Guantanamo - 89 of the 171 - have been unanimously cleared by the CIA, FBI, NSC and Defense Department for transfer or release. Yet no one has been transferred since last January, when Congress created restrictions similar to those in the NDAA. This marks the longest period without a transfer in the prison camp's entire 10-year history and only underscores the president's broken promise and failure to close Guantanamo.
As Obama himself, along with President Bush and NDAA co-sponsor Senator John McCain, acknowledged during the presidential campaign, Guantanamo's very existence makes us less safe. Indeed, Guantanamo, Obama's forever prison, has become a global symbol of human rights violations by a country that claims to be the world leader of freedom.
Are these the legacies Obama, the one-time professor of constitutional law, wants for his presidency?
CCR urges President Obama to veto the NDAA. If he doesn't, he will bear the blame for making indefinite military detention without trial a permanent feature of the U.S. legal system. He will be responsible for signing into law one of the greatest expansions of executive power in our nation's history, allowing the government to lock up citizens and non-citizens without the right to fair trial. Indefinite detention is contrary to the most fundamental principles of the rule of law.
The NDAA would essentially prevent President Obama from bringing men from Guantanamo to the U.S. for trial and severely curtail his ability to resettle them in third countries. More than half of the men currently detained at Guantanamo - 89 of the 171 - have been unanimously cleared by the CIA, FBI, NSC and Defense Department for transfer or release. Yet no one has been transferred since last January, when Congress created restrictions similar to those in the NDAA. This marks the longest period without a transfer in the prison camp's entire 10-year history and only underscores the president's broken promise and failure to close Guantanamo.
As Obama himself, along with President Bush and NDAA co-sponsor Senator John McCain, acknowledged during the presidential campaign, Guantanamo's very existence makes us less safe. Indeed, Guantanamo, Obama's forever prison, has become a global symbol of human rights violations by a country that claims to be the world leader of freedom.
Are these the legacies Obama, the one-time professor of constitutional law, wants for his presidency?
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