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Federal Court Rejects NDAA's Indefinite Detention, Issues Injunction

First time accepted submitter Arker writes "A federal judge granted a preliminary injunction late Wednesday to block provisions of the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act that would allow the military to indefinitely detain anyone it accuses of knowingly or unknowingly supporting terrorism. The Obama administration had argued, inter alia, that the plaintiffs, including whistleblower and transparency advocate Daniel Ellsberg and Icelandic Member of Parliament Birgitta Jonsdottir lacked standing, but Judge Katherine Forrest didnt buy it. Given recent statements from the administration, it seems safe to say this will be the start of a long court battle."

69 of 301 comments (clear)

  1. A small ray of hope by colinrichardday · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's about time someone stood up to the nightmare of a police state.

    1. Re:A small ray of hope by ZeroSumHappiness · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I love that they could indefinitely detain for "unknowingly supporting terrorism." Oh, that plumber you hired to fix your pipes was actually a terrorist? You supported him therefore you supported terrorism. WAT?

    2. Re:A small ray of hope by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Oh, that plumber you hired to fix your pipes was actually a terrorist?

      My good friends call me Harry.

    3. Re:A small ray of hope by Lumpy · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Dont worry, the judge will find himself on a free vacation at Gitmo for his crimes against the government.

      --
      Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
    4. Re:A small ray of hope by MisterSquid · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I love that they could indefinitely detain for "unknowingly supporting terrorism."

      To say nothing about the ways in which US politicians and government operatives make back-channel deals that support terrorism they find politically expedient. You won't see anyone being detained for that.

      --
      blog
    5. Re:A small ray of hope by WrongSizeGlass · · Score: 5, Funny

      I love that they could indefinitely detain for "unknowingly supporting terrorism."

      To say nothing about the ways in which US politicians and government operatives make back-channel deals that support terrorism they find politically expedient. You won't see anyone being detained for that.

      That's because what they do is knowingly support terrorism, which is completely different.

    6. Re:A small ray of hope by artor3 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It only applies to foreign nationals who are arrested overseas (i.e. not on American soil). If you're a citizen or a legal immigrant, you're safe. If you're arrested in America, you're safe. It's not a good law, but my god, does anyone on this site have any idea what it even says?

    7. Re:A small ray of hope by artor3 · · Score: 2, Informative

      No, it doesn't. I've posted the exact text here a dozen times, but hey, what's one more:

      (e) AUTHORITIES.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect existing law or authorities relating to the detention of United States citizens, lawful resident aliens of the United States, or any other persons who are captured or arrested in the United States.

      http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-112hr1540enr/pdf/BILLS-112hr1540enr.pdf, pg 265. Read it for yourself.

      This is a brilliant lie. A devastating lie. Whoever came up with it deserves accolades, because I've never seen a piece of propaganda so effective.

    8. Re:A small ray of hope by mspohr · · Score: 4, Informative

      Even being a US citizen doesn't protect you.
      Anwar al-Awlaki was a US citizen living in Yemen who was thought to have ties to al-Qaeda. His 16 year old son was killed a few weeks later. They were executed by the US (using unmanned drones) without a trial or even charges being brought in the US.
      The Wikipedia page gives a fairly comprehensive biography. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anwar_al-Awlaki

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    9. Re:A small ray of hope by Wandering+Voice · · Score: 2

      Wasnt that the same group that the FBI setup as a honeypot to catch terrorists?

    10. Re:A small ray of hope by kilfarsnar · · Score: 4, Informative

      That had nothing to do with the NDAA. And yes, we should have had an in absentia trial first, but then you'd just be complaining it was a show trial.

      Trials in absentia are generally illegal in the United States. In the 1993 case Crosby v. United States, the Supreme Court ruled that federal law "prohibits the trial in absentia of a defendant who is not present at the beginning of trial."

      --
      "What the American public doesn't know is what makes them the American public." -Ray Zalinsky (Tommy Boy)
    11. Re:A small ray of hope by Tokolosh · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Either we (Americans) believe in our core values (Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, Pledge of Allegiance, due process, etc.) or we do not. Personally, I do, because these values result in desirable outcomes in the long run, even if inconvenient in the short term.

      These values apply universally. There are no exemptions for non-US citizens, location outside the US or convenience to US interests.

      --
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    12. Re:A small ray of hope by Vancorps · · Score: 4, Informative

      Except that he's wrong, as others have pointed out. The term existing laws in there is pretty powerful.

    13. Re:A small ray of hope by NeutronCowboy · · Score: 2

      Is that why everyone was cheering when bin Laden was killed by Navy SEALS? Let's face it, we went down the slippery slope of extra-judicial killings a VERY long time ago.

      Here's the deal: you either accept that we are in an actual war against people who are trying to kill any Americans they can get their hands on, and we use military methods to deal with the threat. Or you accept that we are dealing with a bunch of common criminals, and we bring in the detectives, the cops, and the judges.

      One or the other. You don't send your military into a place to deal with people, and then act surprised because they shoot to kill.

      --
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    14. Re:A small ray of hope by drinkypoo · · Score: 3

      If OBL had gotten a US green card first, would we just have to give up and let him have his way with us?

      We'd have had to make a good faith attempt to capture him instead of moving right to assassination, if we cared about our laws.

      --
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    15. Re:A small ray of hope by mspohr · · Score: 2

      I think you have a very good point.
      The military is really not well suited to track down terrorists and bring them to justice. They are better suited for use where the enemy is also an army. Terrorists operate in small cells and it requires detectives and cops to track them down and bring them to justice. The invasion of Afghanistan was unnecessary since they were willing to turn over al Qaeda and it baffles me why we are still there when al Qaeda has been absent for years. (Iraq was never a terrorist threat, that was just Bush and Cheny trying to take over the world's oil.)
      Domestically, the FBI has been doing a good job of finding and thwarting terrorists and taking them before judges. This is the approach we should take to terrorists. "War" is the wrong term to use since the military is clumsy and ineffective against terrorists. I vote for the FBI.

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    16. Re:A small ray of hope by s.petry · · Score: 2

      Yes, we do. It says in very broad terms that US citizens may be detained without being charged or tried. Just because the president said it wouldn't be done does not mean that some future president would not do it. It very definitely needs to have a narrowing of the possibilities of application if its going to exist at all.

      You mean the same President that swore he would Veto this bill but passed has no intention of taking the actions in the bill because he swears it won't happen?

      The same Administration that swore the bill would not pass yet signed it at 11:59PM 12/21/12 when nobody was watching, and is fighting to keep the clauses in the Law, have no intentions of using the Law?

      The terms "Gullible" and "Having the wool pulled over ones eyes" come to mind, but also "turning a blind eye" and a few others.

      --

      -The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.

  2. No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by crazyjj · · Score: 4, Insightful

    When it makes it to the Supreme Court, they'll affirm the law. They've been asleep at the wheel for 10 years, why wake up now? I'm pretty sure that most of them aren't even aware that there *is* a 4th Amendment at this point. And they probably think Habeas Corpus was a Roman emperor.

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    1. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by crazyjj · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You mean like they struck down the Patriot Act, retroactive immunity for illegal wiretapping, and all the other laws that have made torture and infinite detention with no trial legal?

      --
      What political party do you join when you don't like Bible-thumpers *or* hippies?
    2. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by Shotgun · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Your statement, combined with your sig, gave me a serious headache.

      The Republicans are offering coporate slavery.
      The Democrats are offering government bureaucrat slavery.
      They both are willing to use the military, the "War on [Terror|Drugs|Poverty|Obesity|Bullying|CO2]" to get their way.

      --
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    3. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by cpu6502 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The Court can only strike-down cases brought before them, and the government (both Bush and Obama) have been very careful to make sure that doesn't happen. They drop the case before it ever has a chance to reach the justices.

      BUT when the justices have reviewed cases, they've typically sided with the Constitution, such as striking down the Washington and other city's laws that effectively-forbid ownership of guns. Striking down a law that forced states to build nuclear disposal sites. Striking down warrantless searches of our cellphones. Striking down random stops along highways (unless there's a specific & urgent need: such as locating an escaped prisoner). The Court of the last ten years has done more to limit the government's power than the Court from 1940 to 2000 (which was expansionist).

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    4. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by cpu6502 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      >>>Libertarians think they're getting freedom by eliminating the government. They're just getting corporate slavery.

      More like freedom where you choose which corporation you want to deal with. (1) Libertarians are not Anarchists. Just as Fascist/corporatists are not Communists. Libertarians don't want to eliminate government completely but instead, to quote Jefferson, "If it were possible to have no government, we would. But we need to government in order to protect our rights." He also said, "No man has a right to harm another, and that's all the government should restrain him."

      (2) It is government that gave Comcast its monopoly over my neighborhood. If government were downsized, the monopoly would be gone. Other companies like Apple or MSN or Time-Warner could enter the market and give us some choice.

      (3) And of course we'd still have safety nets for the poor. We'd still have Food Stamps, Housing assistance, welfare checks, and unemployment. I repeat: Libertarians are SMALL government, not no-government anarchists.

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    5. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by Curunir_wolf · · Score: 2

      To be fair, the only provision that you mention that the SCOTUS has upheld was the "material support" provision. It was the 9th Circuit that upheld the retroactive immunity, not SCOTUS.

      Most of the other Patriot Act and FISA laws get dropped by the government when they get to court. They know, for instance, that courts are not going to uphold a law that prevents people from talking about secret warrants, so they bow out instead.

      --
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      --- Jerry Garcia
    6. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by Bob+the+Super+Hamste · · Score: 2
      Problem is that not all of their rulings have been as good as those. One of the biggest was the Citizens United case where they seem to have produced the correct ruling for the individual suing, but screwed the nation. Yes they should have been able to produce and release their moved but rights granted to corporations is where they went wrong. In looking and reading about the case it seems to have gone wrong when Deputy Solicitor General Malcolm L. Stewart arguing for the Federal Elections Commission stated: [quoting from wikipedia]

      the government would have the power to ban books if those books contained even one sentence expressly advocating the election or defeat of a candidate and were published or distributed by a corporation or union.

      This just seems like a sure fire way to get something struck down by the court which is probably why we got the ruling that we did.

      --
      Time to offend someone
    7. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by Grishnakh · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I think you're mistaken.

      The Republicans are offering corporate slavery.
      The Democrats are offering corporate slavery.
      There's some minor differences in the particular corporations they would enslave you to.

    8. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by element-o.p. · · Score: 2

      That's a very eloquent post, but it does nothing to negate GPP's point: the government should be as big as necessary to ensure liberty, but no bigger. Even the "rather large government" you describe above is still smaller than the bloated monstrosity we have today, and quite a bit less restrictive. IMHO, while "Libertarian" covers the gamut from complete wacko anarchists to small government moderates, they are the lesser of all evils.

      --
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    9. Re:No worries, SCOTUS will give it the green light by R3d+M3rcury · · Score: 3, Informative

      It is government that gave Comcast its monopoly over my neighborhood. If government were downsized, the monopoly would be gone. Other companies like Apple or MSN or Time-Warner could enter the market and give us some choice.

      Well, that depends on where you live, doesn't it?

      It's also quite possible that Comcast would come in and build it's network--you know, place their wires under the street--and offer service. Time-Warner would come in, look at the expense on running their own wires, see they have competition which is going to limit how much they can charge and how quickly they will make back that investment and say, "Nah. Not worth it."

      On the other hand, if The Government lays down the wires and allows these companies to use them to deliver services (charging them all an equal fee for use of the wires), then you might actually have quite a bit of competition. Of course, that wouldn't be a good thing because "Government Owning Stuff Is Bad."

      And, depending further upon where you live, Comcast might show up, take one look, and say, "No way would this be worth it." Then you got nothing.

  3. Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What about Obama's signing statement in which he decried the very power he was accepting by signing the NDAA? Do you mean to tell me Obama was dishonest in his disapproval of infinite detention? Shocking.

    The crazy thing is some people actually bought the argument that this clause was forced on him by Congress. The fact that he's defending it in court makes it absolutely clear what his stance on infinite detention is.

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    1. Re:Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 4, Insightful

      If he wanted to reject those provisions, he could've appealed to a court literally the minute he signed it.

      If he wanted to reject those provisions, he should have vetoed it. Actually, if he wanted to adhere to his oath to uphold the Constitution, he is required to veto it. But he didn't, so we know how much an oath is worth to Barack Obama.

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    2. Re:Signing Statement? by cpu6502 · · Score: 2

      The SCOTUS has already ruled that signing statements have no legal standing. They apply to the president currently in charge, but not future presidents.

      Also Obama's white house was the source of these two sentences. His administration specifically asked Congress to add them to the NDAA. So he's trying to pretend "I don't want indefinite detainment" while working behind the scenes to add it to the bill. I thought Clinton and Bush were skilled liars/deceptors, but Obama makes them look like amateurs.

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    3. Re:Signing Statement? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Wow. Just wow.

      How does State Spooge taste, slave?

    4. Re:Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 4, Informative

      Obama directed the DOJ not to enforce the Defense of Marriage Act. He could do the same with any other law. This is why his argument that "we have to enforce the law" when it comes to Cannabis dispensaries is entirely bankrupt.

      In that situation, we put the Justice Department in a very difficult place if we're telling them, "This is supposed to be against the law, but we want you to turn the other way." That's not something we're going to do.

      That's not a difficult place at all, and entirely within his powers as the chief law enforcement officer in the country. He has the power to set priorities for federal law enforcement, including priorities of zero.

      If you're someone who wants to laud Obama for his Civil Rights record, ask yourself how many gay people there are in jail for being gay. Then ask yourself how many Cannabis smokers there are in jail. Why not attack the bigger problem first?

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    5. Re:Signing Statement? by Samantha+Wright · · Score: 2

      I don't understand why so many people have trouble with the idea that Obama does all of these crazy illegal things that he hates because he's trying to win Congress's trust. Is it really that hard to remember what happened to Jimmy Carter?

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    6. Re:Signing Statement? by crazyjj · · Score: 3, Informative

      Having the DOJ actually dispute it in court

      Where on earth did you get that from? It's the DOJ that's *DEFENDING* this law in court, not opposing it.

      --
      What political party do you join when you don't like Bible-thumpers *or* hippies?
    7. Re:Signing Statement? by marcop · · Score: 4, Insightful

      What about it? He should be thrown out of office on treason against the constitution. I'm not arguing whether or not any of his other policies are good or bad, and will not state my political affiliation. However, when a president blatantly violates a basic freedom that so many Americans have fought to protect, a freedom he has sworn to protect, then he deserves treason charges. And yes, GWB deserved it also for the exact same reasons.

      But the sheep that live in this country will ignore it and instead either applaud or crucify him for his social policies. Pitiful.

    8. Re:Signing Statement? by trum4n · · Score: 2

      I think the fact that racists, hate crimes and bigots still exist is a far larger issue than pot heads.

    9. Re:Signing Statement? by cpu6502 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      >>>yet people still fall for it.

      Exactly. Even when I post direct articles from reputable sources like NYtimes or USAtoday about Obama assassinating 3 Americans (including a 16-year-old boy) without giving them their constitutional right to a trial to prove their innocence, there are some people who refuse to believe it. And continue loving the man. (Or just call me racist against black people.)

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    10. Re:Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Yes, but anti cannabis bigotry is far, far worse than anti-gay bigotry. Around 5-10% of the population is gay. Around 10-20% of the population smokes pot. Neither of these groups pose any threat to anyone whatsoever.

      Gay people might get fired because of bigotry. Worst case scenario one is lynched, once a decade or so and there's a huge outcry of sympathy.

      Pot smokers on the other hand go to jail regularly. Persecution of pot smokers is official government policy. When a harmless pot head is killed by a police officer, the officer generally gets a paid vacation for his trouble.

      Every time a pot smoker is arrested, that's a hate crime.

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    11. Re:Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Just how gullible are you? Has the phrase "He beats me because he loves me" ever passed your lips?

      If selling out every democratic principle is what it takes to win Congress's trust, we don't need it. We'd be better off with a president that vetos every single grab for power and gets nothing else done, than we are with this collaborater.

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    12. Re:Signing Statement? by artor3 · · Score: 5, Informative

      You've been tricked by a summary rife with propaganda.

      The the lying demagogue who wrote the article states, "Given recent statements from the administration, it seems safe to say this will be the start of a long court battle." The deceitful bastard was clever enough to include a hyperlink, knowing you wouldn't click on it but would instead just accept it as gospel. But go ahead, click on it. The recent statements referred to are from a joint letter by several former officials. Their names?

      Edwin Meese - Republican Attorney General under Reagan
      Michael Mukasey - Republican Attorney General under George W Bush
      Michael Chertoff - Republican Secretary of Homeland Security under George W Bush
      Steven G Bradbury - Republican Head of the OLC under George W Bush
      Daniel Dell'Orto - Republican Lawyer for the DOD under George W Bush
      David Rivkin - Republican Legal Counsel to both Reagan and George HW Bush, and the guy behind the lawsuit against the ACA
      Charles Stimson - Republican Deputy Assistant Secretary in charge of "Detainee Affairs" under George W Bush
      Paul Butler - Can't find any details on this guy, but he's definitely not the Democrat of the same name who died in the 60s.
      Seven Engel - One of the lawyers in the anti-ACA lawsuit.
      Paul Rosenzsweig - Member of the Heritage Foundation, a well known right-wing think tank.

      Do you really think anyone on that list is speaking for the Obama administration? Sadly, the truth takes time to dig up, and in that time hundreds of people have no doubt seen the summary and your post, and fallen for the propaganda. What hope does truth have against such well-engineered lies?

    13. Re:Signing Statement? by dkleinsc · · Score: 2

      I don't understand why so many people have trouble with the idea that Obama does all of these crazy illegal things that he hates because he's trying to win Congress's trust.

      He doesn't need Congress's trust. He needs the American people's trust. And the country needs to know that laws are being followed and enforced fairly if we don't want the place to turn into a totalitarian regime. Constitutionality is more important than law, and following the law is more important than any political jockeying.

      And if you don't understand how important that is, consider how you reacted when George W Bush did all sorts of crazy illegal things. If it's ok for presidents you like to do something, it's also ok for presidents you don't like to do the same thing.

      --
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    14. Re:Signing Statement? by cpu6502 · · Score: 2

      Well you shouldn't. If someone calls me a "white honkey" I am not harmed by that act. It's just words and I can walk away from the idiot.

      If someone beats me up, I can pull my gun and kill him. Per my natural right of self-defense.

      BUT if the government has control over my body, and forbids me from smoking weed (or snorting coke) (or drinking alcohol) then that is a FAR more dangerous thing. It means the politicians and bureaucrats have control over my body, like a Middle Ages lord over his serf, and can toss me in jail any time they desire.

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    15. Re:Signing Statement? by cpu6502 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Irrelevant. It was OBAMA who told Congress to add those two sentences for indefinite detainment w/o trial. The only reason he would do that is so he can use the power to grab Americans off the streets, accuse them of being terrorists, and then lock them away for 10 years w/o a trial to defend their innocence. (Probably in Guantanamo... the place Obama promised to close but never did.) Obama also assassinated 3 americans in Africa, including one 16-year-old boy, and without giving them their recognized right to trial. He is NOT the honest man you believe him to be.

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    16. Re:Signing Statement? by artor3 · · Score: 4, Informative

      So it's irrelevant that the summary is a lie? Sure, yeah, who gives a fuck about the truth when you have a political axe to grind.

      Furthermore, Obama did not insist on the addition of "those two sentences for indefinite detainment". The indefinite detention section was already there, but only applied to Al Qaeda. Obama asked for it to be expanded to cover other terrorist groups. But it can't be used to "grab Americans off the streets", as you claim, because it also says:

      (e) AUTHORITIES.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect existing law or authorities relating to the detention of United States citizens, lawful resident aliens of the United States, or any other persons who are captured or arrested in the United States.

      But let me guess... that's also irrelevant. No truth is relevant if it goes against your limitless hatred.

    17. Re:Signing Statement? by niado · · Score: 2

      By that logic over half our presidents in the 20th century probably should have been thrown out of office.

    18. Re:Signing Statement? by fwice · · Score: 2

      Pot smokers can choose not to smoke pot.

      Gay people cannot choose not to be gay.

      That is why the Gay rights issue is a higher priority.

    19. Re:Signing Statement? by reboot246 · · Score: 2

      Yes, the letter you refer to was written and signed by Republicans (the bad kind of Republicans).

      But you failed to notice that the effort to repeal the objectionable part of the NDAA is a bipartisan effort led in part by Republicans (the good kind of Republicans), Reps. Ron Paul and Justin Amash along with help from some Democrats (the good kind of Democrats) like Rep. Adam Smith.

      We don't have many friends in Congress nowadays. At least give the ones we do have some credit when they try to do the right thing.

    20. Re:Signing Statement? by DragonWriter · · Score: 4, Informative

      It was OBAMA who told Congress to add those two sentences for indefinite detainment w/o trial.

      There are more than two sentences about that.

      The "two sentences" the administration fought to have added, once it was clear that the Congress wouldn't pass the NDAA without indefinite detention language, were the ones that provide that the indefinite detention provisions in the NDAA neither "limit or expand the authority of the President or the scope of the Authorization for Use of Military Force" nor affect any "law or authorities relating to the detention of United States citizens, lawful resident aliens of the United States, or any other persons who are captured or arrested in the United States".

      The President stated at the time that the original language would be unconstitutional and unacceptable and require a veto, and -- in his signing statement -- that with the new language the provisions were still undesirable, and unnecessary since they had no effect beyond what had already been done by the AUMF.

      The court in its preliminary injunction disagreed and said that as a principal of construction statutes should be read as doing something, and that the something that the NDAA did on this issue appears to be unconstitutional. The difference between the court on the administration isn't over whether the NDAA doing anything beyond what had been previously been found to be authorized by the AUMF and found constitutional by the Supreme Court in cases challenging actions under the AUMF would be unconstitutional, the difference is over whether the NDAA, on its own terms, actually does anything at all on the issue.

      Note that this has set up a controversy under which a court siding with either the administration or those challenging the law would find no new power under the NDAA -- if the administration is right, the NDAA has no effect on indefinite detention powers regardless of its Constitutionality. If the challengers are right, the NDAA's detention provisions are unconstitutional, and, as such, have no effect.

      (Probably in Guantanamo... the place Obama promised to close but never did.)

      Congress blocking funds from being used for that purpose repeatedly since Obama came to office has nothing to do with that, right?

    21. Re:Signing Statement? by element-o.p. · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I would say that the American people have become so intellectually lazy, complacent and ignorant that they let the President -- any President -- as well as Congress get away with crazy, illegal things...and I'm an American myself, so it's incredibly frustrating to me how many people Just. Don't. Get. It: "But we're the good guys. I don't care if a terrorist is locked up indefinitely. They should be locked up, right?"

      Sigh...

      --
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    22. Re:Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 2

      Stop pretending like this isn't how Washington works.

        Washington doesn't work, that's the point. When the most promising opportunity for actual change in an entire generation comes along, and it's utterly pissed away like this, it's time to give up on working through the system. It's completly broken, and cannot be repaired.

      The only chance of this getting better is for the people to take the streets, and not give them back until our Constitutional rights are restored.

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    23. Re:Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 2

      Sober people cause fatal accidents too. Perhaps we should prohibit sobriety.

      See what happens when you argue from emotion instead of reason? You come to idiotic conclusions.

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    24. Re:Signing Statement? by snowgirl · · Score: 2

      When a harmless pot head is killed by a police officer, the officer generally gets a paid vacation for his trouble.

      It is standard process that an officer is placed on paid administrative leave in ALL shooting deaths. So, it doesn't matter if the officer shoots a "harmless pot head" or a machine-gun-wielding terrorist roaming a college campus. They get paid administrative leave.

      This is to allow them time to investigate and see if the action taken was justified. "Why don't them place them on unpaid leave during that time?" Because you cannot punish a person prior to due process taking its course.

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    25. Re:Signing Statement? by snowgirl · · Score: 2

      If he wanted to reject those provisions, he should have vetoed it. Actually, if he wanted to adhere to his oath to uphold the Constitution, he is required to veto it. But he didn't, so we know how much an oath is worth to Barack Obama.

      You can't veto the NDAA, because then how are you going to pay the troops without authorization? That's why the NDAA always contains crap like this, because it's "must pass" legislation.

      However, Obama did the right thing in this case. He gave a signing statement that had no power, but puts his views on the matter on record. He then signed an Executive Order baring the execution of the law, as he deemed it unconstitutional.

      BTW, who's fucking complaining about the Republicans breaking their own legislative rules that acts of congress have to be specific. This shouldn't have been attached as a rider to must-pass legislation at all.

      Honestly, it's like Congress made a law saying that you cannot kill babies, and then attached a rider saying "OBTW, we can detain you for anything at anytime, for any reason, for any length of time", and when the people fail to vote for the bill, because who wants to be branded as a person who is for baby killing? (Theo de Radt?)

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      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    26. Re:Signing Statement? by Hatta · · Score: 2

      Either 1) it's irreparably broken and you need to stop blaming Obama for things that apparently are out of his control

      Obama has the power to fix a lot of problems with the country. The problem with the system is that no one who actually wants to fix the problems can ever get elected.

      2) instead of griping about how awful the system is, run for office and fix it yourself, or start your own PAC for change, or otherwise try to make things better.

      Are you stupid? PACs are useless without major corporate donors. No major corporation is going to donate to a cause that would destroy their political power if successful.

      I am doing what I can to make things better. Like I said, the only way anything is going to change for the better is if the people take the streets and refuse to give them back until our rights are given back. The more people that realize this fact, the closer we get to that day.

      You can't have it both ways; sit here whining about a system that doesn't work, and then whining about someone else who is doing the best job they can to work within the imperfect system to keep everything from falling apart.

      He's not doing the best job he can, not by a long shot. When authoritarians push, push back harder. Call them out on it. Use the bully pulpit to explain to the people why authoritarianism will not make them safe. Use every power you have, vetoes, government lawyers, the entire DOJ, to oppose authoritarianism.

      Obama has done none of this. Why not? As far as I can tell it's because he's complicit in it.

      Well, I suppose technically you can, but it's completely unproductive and you come off as a tool.

      Not as big of a tool as the jackasses voting for "their guy" and thinking they're doing the right thing when "their guy" is as big of a corporate fascist as anyone in Washington.

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      Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
  4. Constitutional rights... by spidercoz · · Score: 4, Insightful

    They apply to everyone or they mean nothing. James T. Kirk taught me that, and I agree with him.

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    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - Evelyn Beatrice Hall, re Voltaire
  5. About time by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's also about time we admit to ourselves that police state momentum (i.e. continuous expansion of government) is now in full swing and supported by ALL mainstream political interests. And the next step is admitting that those political interests work purely for themselves, and not "the people" as they claim (increasingly loudly).

    1. Re:About time by Grishnakh · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Not just "political interests" (which I assume you mean political parties and candidates and other well-connected people or organizations), it's the regular American people too. Anyone who votes Republican, except maybe the die-hard Ron Paul people who aren't also Tea Party supporters, obviously supports a police state. And then anyone who supports Obama (which is most Democrats) strongly supports a police state too, because they're so dumb that they support anything Obama supports, even if back during Bush's reign they were fervently opposed to that exact same thing.

      It's looking more obvious to me that Obama was a plant by the powers-that-be to get the American people on board with their schemes. Before, it was only the Republican voters who were easily duped into supporting this crap, and the Democrat voters were generally against it. So they realized all they had to do was come up with a Democrat candidate who said nice-sounding things to get these peoples' support, then when he was in office he'd just copy all of Bush's policies, and since the voters are such dumb sheep, most of them would simply change their opinions to match the policies of the guy they voted for. I believe psychologists would classify this behavior as "cognitive dissonance". There's still some Obama voters and other Democrats who are pissed at him, but most of them support him and shout down the disgruntled ones.

    2. Re:About time by Grishnakh · · Score: 2

      Obama has gone along with the Republican agenda in the name of "compromise". If he were actually honest and principled, he would have opposed them at every turn, even if it meant getting nothing done and not getting re-elected.

      1. Why didn't he close Guantanamo? It was his campaign promise. It doesn't matter what Congress says, he's the executive. He's enforcing an unconstitutional law in holding people there without trial, and that deserves impeachment. If he has to just let them go, even onto American soil, that's better than violating the Constitution and peoples' rights.
      http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/08/opinion/sunday/notes-from-a-guantanamo-survivor.html?_r=1

      2. The healthcare bill was his and Pelosi's baby, not the Republicans', and it's a pile of corporatist horseshit that enriches giant insurance companies instead of providing healthcare. If he couldn't get a real reform bill passed, he shouldn't have done anything at all, or just tried and pointed out he was prevented by the Republicans.

      3. What's Obama doing about the TSA? Nothing, they're totally out of control with him in charge of them. It isn't Congress that's directing them to set up roadblocks and molest small children.

    3. Re:About time by MobyDisk · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The step after that, is admitting that this is also supported by mainstream Americans. Here at Slashdot we would like to think that it is the people -vs- the politicians. But in reality the people support this too. Despite rhetoric to the contrary, most Americans trust the government and the military to look out for them, and so they support warrant-less wiretapping and infinite detention because they perceive that it protects them from terrorists.

      I'm sorry, but the enemy is us.

  6. Someone please free us by Sloppy · · Score: 4, Funny

    It's about time someone stood up..

    ..so that we don't have to. The last thing I want in November when electing congresspeople, senators, and presidents, is to be stuck with that responsibility. It's about time someone relieved us all from having to think about the kind of relationship we want there to be, between our government and its people.

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    As copyright owner of this comment, I authorize everyone to defeat any technological measure which limits access to it.
  7. inter alia by b4dc0d3r · · Score: 2

    First time accepted submitter Arker writes inter alia when he meant to say either

    • "among other things"
    • "I copied and pasted from the article", or
    • "I'm a first year law student"

    In context, the usage is not clear, but I'm guessing the first one. In case it helps someone who likewise wanted to know if it could possibly be used as an innuendo. I don't like learning new words that can't be innuendo'ed.

  8. The actual ruling by Bob+the+Super+Hamste · · Score: 5, Informative

    For those who would like to read the actual 68 page ruling from Judge Katherine Forrest.

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    Time to offend someone
  9. Re:I Feel Dirty Somehow by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Actually, she does have standing. As a member of parliament, she could be expected to travel to the US for official state visits. Her records have already been subpoenaed by the DOJ because of her association with WikiLeaks. Therefore, if her simple presence in the US could make her subject to indefinite detention, she does have standing - remember, she was afraid to come to the US to testify for that exact reason. Remember, the US Constitution doesn't apply only to US citizens, it applies to anyone subject to US law, including visitors and foreign nationals wanted by US authorities...

  10. Re:I Feel Dirty Somehow by Jiro · · Score: 2

    According to TFA, the government refused to say whether the Icelandic parliament member was violating the law or could be jailed. Perhaps we haven't snatched any Icelanders yet, but the government is still reserving the right to do so in the future and specifically is reserving the right to snatch this particular person.

    Of course, the government probably wouldn't snatch any Icelanders, but that would be because of selective prosecution--the law lets them snatch anyone. If the law lets them snatch anyone, then anyone should have standing.

  11. You're wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative
    "This is a brilliant lie" Nope, sorry chief, you fail. Read it AGAIN "Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect existing law" EXISITING LAW. Which in this case is the AUMF, already allowed indefinite detention by Presidential fiat. This law just codifies it. You are EXACTLY wrong.

    (a) In General. Congress affirms that the authority of the President to use all necessary and appropriate force pursuant to the [AUMF] includes the authority of the Armed Forces of the United States to detain covered persons (as defined in subsection (b)) pending disposition under the law of war. (b) Covered Persons. A covered person under this section is any person as follows . . . (2) A person who was part of or substantially supported al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners, including any person who has committed a belligerent act or has directly supported such hostilities in aid of such enemy forces. (c) Disposition Under the Law of War. The disposition of a person under the law of war as described un subsection (a) may include the following: (1) Detention under the law of war without trial until the end of hostilities authorized by the [AUMF].

    The AUMF is the "existing law" the NDAA codifies, you simply have chosen to misread the statute.

  12. Re:Helping Terrorists by Tokolosh · · Score: 2

    We don't need one.

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    Prove anything by multiplying Huge Number times Tiny Number
  13. Re:Corporatism is the enemy of left and right by Grishnakh · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I don't think that's an accurate portrayal of the Tea Partiers at all. It was probably accurate back when that group first got started, but they were very quickly co-opted by corporate interests, so nowadays they're just the more extreme wing of the (corporatist) Republican party. It's sad, because they had some good principles at the very beginning, but just like how easily the Obama voters were led into accepting and backing Bush policies just by having "their guy" parrot them, the TPers were easily led into pushing for tax cuts for the ultra-rich and corporations by some politicians claiming to be for them.

  14. Dissonance by ThatsNotPudding · · Score: 3, Funny

    If government were downsized, the monopoly would be gone. Other companies like Apple...

    /head explodes

  15. It's inevitable by ourlovecanlastforeve · · Score: 2

    Stop struggling. The government will be allowed to imprison anyone for no reason and monitor everything everyone does for no reason. There's no point trying to stop it. Your vote doesn't matter because if the Government doesn't like your vote they'll just change it. We're in a sick downward spiral that will result in revolt, genocide and eventually mass destitution. Already a majority of Americans are out of jobs. The only reason government statistics don't consider a majority of people to be unemployed is because you're only considered unemployed if you can be verified as currently looking for work. According the the US government, you're not unemployed if you've given up looking for a job. Also, if you have a mortgage, the government considers you a small business owner and thus employed. We will only start to recover when the money being hoarded by the obscenely rich is no longer worth anything.