Jen's Green Journal

Last year's Military Commissions Act of 2006 was a disgrace to the values we claim to hold in this country. Congress, including our own "Democrat" Jim Matheson, voted to give King George  the power to imprison anyone, anytime for no reason whatsoever. Think you are protected because you are an American citizen? All King George has to do is declare you an "enemy combatant" and then you can be held indefinitely -- no charges brought against you, no trial, no opportunities to even see a lawyer.

Now that there is a Dem majority in Congress, it's time to reign in the excesses of power abuse by the executive branch and get rid of that law.

From True Majority:
"Tell your Representative to Restore our Constitutional rights to habeas corpus.

    http://action.truemajority.org/campaign/habeas_corpus
 
Maybe it sounds like a legal technicality, but the habeas corpus right is pretty simple, and pretty important. Keith Olbermann of MSNBC called it "the right of anyone who’s tossed in prison to appear in court and say 'Hey, why am I in prison?'."¹  Without that right, people get thrown into places like Guantanamo Bay for years with no evidence other than the say-so of a bounty hunter collecting his $5,000 fee.² And legal experts say the law is written so that anyone, U.S. citizen or not, could get that treatment if they run afoul of the President.³
 
It's hard to write about even the basic facts here without sounding overly-dramatic, but this is how it is. One of the reasons we fought the Revolution was so that a king could not imprison people without a court hearing. Taking away that right is not protecting America, it's dismantling it.
 
Congressman Nadler is trying to add language to an existing bill which would restore habeas corpus. If that fails, he promises to bring it up again, as an amendment. If that fails, there are new bills waiting which would undo the damage of last October's "Military Commissions Act." Send your message now to tell your Representatives to do what it takes to restore this cornerstone of American democracy.

Matt Holland
TrueMajorityACTION Online Director

1 - The death of habeas corpus - MSNBC.com

2 - The Shame of Guantanamo – Washington Post Writers Group

3 - Challenging the Military Commissions Act, Jurist, October 04, 2006

For More Information:

Article I, Section 9, Clause 2 of the Constitution of the United States:
 
“The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.” [italics added]

Who's Really Locked up in Guantanamo?"