SEC. 1032. REQUIREMENT FOR MILITARY CUSTODY.
(a) Custody Pending Disposition Under Law of War-
(1) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in paragraph (4), the Armed Forces of the United States shall hold a person described in paragraph (2) who is captured in the course of hostilities authorized by the Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40) in military custody pending disposition under the law of war.
(2) COVERED PERSONS- The requirement in paragraph (1) shall apply to any person whose detention is authorized under section 1031 who is determined--
(A) to be a member of, or part of, al-Qaeda or an associated force that acts in coordination with or pursuant to the direction of al-Qaeda; and
(B) to have participated in the course of planning or carrying out an attack or attempted attack against the United States or its coalition partners.
... snip ...
(b) Applicability to United States Citizens and Lawful Resident Aliens-
(1) UNITED STATES CITIZENS- The requirement to detain a person in military custody under this section does not extend to citizens of the United States
(2) LAWFUL RESIDENT ALIENS- The requirement to detain a person in military custody under this section does not extend to a lawful resident alien of the United States on the basis of conduct taking place within the United States, except to the extent permitted by the Constitution of the United States.
The way I read this, American citizens and legal aliens are specifically exempted from the requirement to detain enemy combatants. So, can someone explain to me why there is cause for concern?
My instincts were correct - if the ACLU is against it it must have some redeeming qualities.
1) Slippery slope incrementalism. No matter what kind of power you give the federal government, they *never* stay within the original defined limits
2) Consider the source. These people are *not* trustworthy.
And it was voted on, and it is a 48 year old legislation that gets an appropriation every year with some amendments.
LucyT - GenX has quotes from the bill.
I would like to know the specifics and truth; really hard to know sometimes.