WHAT Constitution? Lifetime Imprisonment of Uncharged Suspects Sought

[Nothing Without Hope]

Once again, they prove their view that the Constitution is interchangeable with toilet tissue. If they further pack the Supreme Court, what can stop them? This is why we have to keep fighting.
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http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0102-01.htm

US Said to Mull Lifetime Terror-Suspect Detentions
Published on Sunday, January 2, 2005 by Reuters

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration is preparing plans for possible lifetime detention of suspected terrorists, including hundreds whom the government does not have enough evidence to charge in courts, The Washington Post reported Sunday.

Citing intelligence, defense and diplomatic officials, the newspaper said the Pentagon and the CIA had asked the White House to decide on a more permanent approach for those it would not set free or turn over to courts at home or abroad.

As part of a solution, the Defense Department, which holds 500 prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, plans to ask the U.S. Congress for $25 million to build a 200-bed prison to hold detainees who are unlikely to ever go through a military tribunal for lack of evidence, defense officials told the newspaper.

(snip)

One proposal would transfer large numbers of Afghan, Saudi and Yemeni detainees from the U.S. military's Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detention center into new U.S.-built prisons in their home countries, it said.
(snip)
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Self-edited to add link to the Washington Post article cited:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A41475-2005Jan1?language=printer

[Old and In the Way]

1. I wonder how many of these suspects may have information that

would embarass this administration...or worse?

[Nothing Without Hope]

3. Some, I'll bet. Some will conveniently die, like Saddam will. n/t

[proud patriot]

2. GRRRRRRRRRRR

:mad:

[LeftCoast]

4. They love the Constitution, until it becomes inconvenient...

Bastards! :nuke:

[atommom]

5. Not enough evidence to put them before a tribunal, but enough to

put them in prison for life? Are they simply cruel and evil, or are they trying to silence these detainees for some other reason?

[Nothing Without Hope]

8. They really don't get "humanity." It's an alien concept to them.

I recommend Digby's insightful blog article on the strange inhumanity of Bush and his apologists, linked to and discussed in this DU thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x2893162

(You'll have to scroll down to find it now at Hullabaloo; it's the Jan 1 entry.)

[atommom]

12. Interesting link! And I agree with it completely. nt

[Spinzonner]

6. Do not question the decisions of Der Fuhrer

There is no law but him.

Didn't you get the memos from Yoo and Gonzales ?

[Nothing Without Hope]

11. Confirming Gonzales as AG is tacitly accepting that this is OK.

Those "terror memos" were not an isolated aberration. This is how they really think, and they really don't see what's wrong with it. They'll try to keep it secret, because they know it upsets people, but they really have no morals whatsoever. Does not compute.

This needs to be put out to all the Congresspeople responsible for ruling on Gonzales. This is what is coming. This and who knows what else is why Bush wants him. He's NEVER going to say, "George, you can't do that, it's against the law."

[tuvor]

7. And what Declaration of Independence?

I thought it was a self-evident truth that ALL men are created equal.

[Nothing Without Hope]

10. Animal Farm: "...but some are more equal than others." n/t

[Benhurst]

9. The Constitution is a dead letter thanks to our gutless Congress

going along with the Bush Crime Family's "Patriot" Act.

It should be put up for sale on E-bay, which would at least bring in a little cash for our wars of aggression. We could then save even more money by closing down the grotesque display maintained by Diebold at the National Archives.

[vixengrl]

13. "How to deal with people long-term"?

If there isn't enough evidence to say that they are terrorists, and they have no good information to provide us with--why the hell are we talking about doing anything with these human beings "long-term"? Or if there's reasonable cause to suspect they've got some kind of juicy contacts we haven't found out about--why, let them go and monitor them--at least it's *useful*. Just holding people "because they want to" or "because they can" is cruel and senseless.

[jdj]

14. Thanks so much for posting this, it's been upsetting me all night.

How can they legally do this...

The world is so corrupt...is their any hope at all??

How can you detain someone for life that you haven't even charged and then say that the reason you are detaining them is because you don't have enough to charge them on.

[Nothing Without Hope]

15. They CAN'T legally do this, but will that stop them? Remember Hitler

Gonzales already has a history of ignoring national and international law to give these people what they want. As for them, the Constitution is something to quote only where it suits them and to ignore otherwise. If there are questions, they will rachet up the fear and remind everyone it's to PROTECT them from "terrorists." It's been a very useful strategy for them, and they're not the first to use it. It got the country into the Iraq war, got the Patriot Act passed, got them pretty much everything illegal that they've wanted. The people were too afraid to refuse.

Hitler's right-hand man Goering said in 1946,

"Why of course the people don't want war. Why should some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece? Naturally the common people don't want war neither in Russia, nor in England, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country."