Military policing gains favor in wake of Sept. 11
Pentagon officials are re-evaluating an 1878 law that prevents troops from helping protect U.S. citizens.
July 21, 2002
By ERIC SCHMITT
The New York Times
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- The four-star general in charge of defending the United States against attack said he would favor changes in existing law to give greater domestic powers to the military to protect the country against terrorist strikes.
The Bush administration has directed lawyers in the Departments of Justice and Defense to review the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 and any other laws that sharply restrict the military's ability to participate in domestic law enforcement.
Any changes would be subject to congressional approval.
The general, Ralph E. Eberhart of the Air Force, said he had no specific changes in mind, but added in an interview here, "We should always be reviewing things like Posse Comitatus and other laws if we think it ties our hands in protecting the American people."
The willingness of Eberhart and some other senior officers to consider amending the post-Reconstruction-era law is a shift in thinking by many top Pentagon officials, who have traditionally been wary of involving the military in domestic law enforcement.
Military leaders have generally supported the restrictions because their troops were not specifically trained in those roles, and they worried that domestic tasks could lead to serious political problems.
But in the aftermath of Sept. 11, some Pentagon officials and military officers are beginning to realize that the law, as it stands, may slow or complicate their domestic-defense missions.
Some military officials fear that without additional authority to operate in the United States, they could be blamed for failures but not have adequate ability to prevent them.
But other Pentagon officials continue to contend that accepting greater domestic responsibilities is risky, and that any proposed changes should receive careful public scrutiny.
The Posse Comitatus Act was enacted after Reconstruction in response to the perceived misuse of federal troops who were charged with domestic law enforcement in the South. But it has come to symbolize the separation of civilian affairs from military influence.
Posse Comitatus restricts military forces from performing domestic law enforcement duties, like policing. Over the years, the law has been amended to allow the military to lend equipment to federal, state and local authorities; assist federal agencies in drug interdiction work; protect national parks; and execute quarantine and certain health laws.
"My view has been that Posse Comitatus will constantly be under review as we mature this command, as we do our exercises, as we interact with FEMA, FBI and those lead federal agencies out there," said Eberhart, referring to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The Northern Command, which begins operations here Oct. 1, will be in charge of all military personnel involved in flying patrols over American cities, guarding the waters up to 500 miles off the U.S. coast, and responding to major terrorist attacks.
In his vision for the new command, Eberhart said the military could use new technology, like remote-controlled surveillance blimps operating at 70,000 feet and unmanned Predator drones that would patrol American coastlines.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Gen. Rich ard B. Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have said that in a catastrophe, the military might help quarantine disaster victims and deal with the water and sanitation needs of thousands of people.
"If a city had no ability to respond and no ability to command and control, there's a situation where the president says: 'This is an emergency. Northern Command, you have the lead,' " Eberhart said. "God forbid, we'd be prepared to do that."