Obama Considers Detaining Terror Suspects Indefinitely

[springhill]

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/14/obama-considers-detaining-terror-suspects-indefinitely/

The Obama administration is weighing plans to detain some terror suspects on U.S. soil -- indefinitely and without trial -- as part of a plan to retool military commission trials that were conducted for prisoners held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The proposal being floated with members of Congress is another indication of President Barack Obama's struggles to establish his counter-terrorism policies, balancing security concerns against attempts to alter Bush-administration practices he has harshly criticized.

[Justitia]

1. Pravda? Really? -eom

[bluestateguy]

2. This is an unreliable story that relies on anonymous sources

It's rubbish.

[Rex]

3. No that is a bad idea.

Are we going to kill them and execute them without anyone knowing too?

Oh Foxnews, okay should I care to listen to them? Been awhile so are they still RW insano types? Or just moderate idiots like CNN?

[Tarheel_Dem]

4. You have got to be kidding, right? Fox News is now a legitimate news source?

Since you chose not to comment, I assume you were just hoping to stir some shit? Am I right?

[SeattleGirl]

5. Faux Snooze?

If this is true, I'll wait for a more reliable source, thank you.

[springhill]

6. Daily KOS reports on WSJ Story.................

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/5/13/731166/-What-a-day!-First-no-photos;-now-indefinite-detention

Obama admin considers indefinite detention, without trial, of some Guantanamo detainees

Well, first there was news that the President Obama had changed his mind about about releasing the photos of purported abuuse of detainees held in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Now, this evening, The Wall Street Journal reports that the Obama administration is discussing plans to detain some terror suspects on US soil, indefinitely and without trial.

From the Pot Stirer.......you know I have such a history of that.

[SeattleGirl]

12. Thank you for the link.

I just wanted something other than Fox.

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. Ok this should hit main news soon

and if this is the case, then we are truly fucked

And empire wins

[BlooInBloo]

8. It's funny watching DUers go to fox in order to whine about Obama.

[Fumesucker]

9. Obama is a centrist..

And indefinite detention without trial is a centrist position.

Only far left purists are in favor of letting terrorists out of prison to kill again.

The Constitution is not a suicide pact, eh?

Edited for speling.

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. Where have I read that meme before? HMMMM where exactly?

Oh yes, free republic... and also the right wing dominated board on AOL c. 2002-3

The constitution is not a suicide pact

Oh and in that case it was the loony left.

HMMM

Just saying...

I will bring to your attention that POWs are also released at the end of hostilities.

Oh never mind... next I will hear that these are not POWs, and that we can torture at will since they are not covered by the Conventions... because they didn't sign them. Where again have I read that argument before?

Yep, party before country... indeed

[Fumesucker]

14. I did good, didn't I?

I really didn't think I'd get any bites, and certainly not that quickly.

We are well and truly fucked, it is now impossible to parody the cheerleaders and have anyone even recognize that one is doing parody.

[nadinbrzezinski]

16. Yep you did

I recommend the tag...

[Fumesucker]

17. But that reduces the power of the parody.

By falling for the over the top sarcasm you made my point far more clearly than I could have by myself.

I'm familiar enough with your writings that I have a pretty good idea of where you stand on things, I guess I don't post enough for you to have become familiar with my positions.

[nadinbrzezinski]

18. I am just that tonight I have been hit over the head

by many folks who were ahem, critical of those same stances when the bushbots made them, that are now making them

It is kind of Mr. Serling I am ready for my close-up.

Cue Twilight Zone music

[Fumesucker]

19. You are entering a dimension of mind...

A mind huffing lacquer thinner.

[nadinbrzezinski]

20. I know, I guess it is time to go hit a rack

sleep on it, and gather energy

Now it is the Ds I am fighting...

Party before country is not the way I choose to live...

To defend and protect ... against enemies both foreign and domestic...

[Fumesucker]

21. ..both foreign and domestic...

We are all the hero in our own story..

None of these people think of themselves as "the enemy", they think of you and I that way.

[nadinbrzezinski]

27. Exacttly

[springhill]

11. Oh brother............

so you agree with indefinite detention and no trial? How do we know they are guilty? Because Obama says so? Let's just bring Bush back.

[Fumesucker]

13. See...

Sarcasm about cheerleaders has become impossible, they are immune to parody since there is no way to make their positions more ridiculous than they already are.

[springhill]

15. You are so right.

[Hippo_Tron]

22. We're talking about people fighting against the US on the battlefield in Afghanistan and Iraq

These people are for all intents and purposes prisoners of war except that they don't wear a uniform. Prisoners of war have always been held indefinitely, meaning until the war is over and negotiations are settled. The problem is that these people don't really have a country to answer for them as prisoners of war.

The best legal thing to do would probably be to return them to Afghanistan or Iraq and have them stand trial there. But I'm not sure their governments are really equipped to handle that at this point.

Either way, we're not talking about people apprehended by law enforcement.

[Fumesucker]

24. The war will never be over..

Which means these people will never be released.

Aren't you glad you aren't one of them?

[Hippo_Tron]

25. Under Bush/Cheney/McCain there is indeed an endless war paradaigm

Under Obama I have some faith that this will "war" will come under some more narrow parameters with some kind of definitive endgame. We are dealing with somewhat uncharted territory where we are fighting on a battlefield against people without a country. You can't try them in a criminal proceeding because the battlefield isn't a crime scene. But you also can't simply release them so that they can go back to fighting you.

Obama probably doesn't know exactly what the hell to do about these particular detainees and frankly I don't know either. What's your suggestion?

[Fumesucker]

26. There's this thing called the Constitution..

And I understand that Obama is a Constitutional scholar.

As such he should realize that we are not in a war, hence these people cannot be prisoners of war.

Therefore these people should be either charged and tried or released.

And yes, it might come back to bite us on the ass, or worse.

But sometimes you have to do the right thing because it is the right thing.

[Hippo_Tron]

29. We are at war in Afghanistan and Iraq

But if you're referring to this concept that the battlefield is the entire world, then I agree with you we are not at war. If they were apprehended outside of a combat zone they must be tried or released. In a combat zone it is a different matter.

[nadinbrzezinski]

28. No you are fighting an idea

We are breaking several major paradigms of the art of war... one of them was not fight against an idea.

Another was the long war is damaging to the country in the long run

And my favorite, go to war with a plan, they didn't.

We already lost this war, because it is a war that by design cannot be won. Oh and terrorism is a matter for law enforcement, not military forces...

Faith in obama... at this point it is right down there with Bush's... which is none whatsoever.

[Hippo_Tron]

30. We're not fighting an idea in Afghanistan and Iraq

Even if our motivation to go there was to fight an idea. But those are still conventional military conflicts, at least at the moment.

I agree that you can't apprehend people and hold them without charge all over the world because of Bush's concept that this "war on terror" transcends boundaries and anything can done in a military action. Thus if they are apprehended by the CIA or law enforcement I agree that they must be tried.

But if they are literally caught on the battlefield in Afghanistan or Iraq then you can't just simply release soldiers of the people we are fighting right now while we are still fighting there. Once our troops are gone from the region then I do think we should find some way to release them.

[nadinbrzezinski]

32. terrorism is a tactic

and a very valid military tactic, and yes we went to war against an idea, and for empire

[Hippo_Tron]

34. I'm not talking about detaining terrorists

I'm talking about detaining people we are fighting on a conventional battlefield in Afghanistan and Iraq.

[nadinbrzezinski]

35. They are talking indefinite detention

and I can bet secret sites will follow

That is what they are talking about

Prisoners of War, sure, we had POW camps IN THE UNITED STATES during WW II.

They were visited REGULARLY by the ICRC.

We are not doing that

[Hippo_Tron]

36. Lindsay Graham, Fixed News, and the Murdoch Journal are talking indefinite detention

The problem is that while this is a conventional battlefield these aren't conventional detainees because they don't have a country to answer for them.

Yes I believe we are morally bound to treat them as we would treat any other prisoner of war under the Geneva Conventions in terms of how we treat them while they are detained. But how to go about releasing them and when to release them is a legal clusterfuck and frankly until I hear a statement from somebody directly speaking for Obama or Holder, I'm not going to jump to any conclusions.

[nadinbrzezinski]

37. So is MSNBC by the way the folks at the WH switchboard

said they are getting MANY CALLS on this calling Obama no different than Junior, and you know what, they are hearing it for a reason...

And you may not, I knew this was coming... EMPIRE trumps everything

Change we can believe in my dying ass

[ima_sinnic]

23. aww, look at the cute little pretend wind-up "constitutional scholar"

how does he explain this, exactly, to his young daughters?

"some people have no rights because I say so." Is that what he says?

"the rule of law is an antiquated notion that formed the basis of our democracy--until I decided it was too inconvenient and messy for my career. the rule of law applies only when I say it does. oh, and now that I'm president, don't worry about anything at all, because if I do it, it's legal."

To the troops: "Bring in whomever you can find by paying people to give you names, and throw away the key. And torture at will--but this time, do it in undisclosed locations."

[spanone]

31. i would never quote faux news as a source ....never...hiding

[DU GrovelBot]

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[shadowknows69]

38. Does Fox even realize by running this, probably bullshit, story

That they actually improve his image with their Patriot Act lovin demographics? I know they're not too bright over there but wow.

[MisterP]

39. this week reminds me of this Spitting Image gem:

"Which U.S. President is in favor of indefinite detention?" "...in favor of eternal war?" etc.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCQa4iFmkW4