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The Padilla Doctrine Doesn't Infringe on Freedom -- It Destroys It
(Jacob G. Hornberger, FFF, June 4, 2004)
Critics of the federal government's two-year incarceration of accused terrorist Jose Padilla without charges or trial correctly point out that the government has violated Padilla's right to counsel and his rights to due process of law, habeas corpus, and jury trial, all of which are guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. But let's be clear about the real significance of the Padilla case: the Padilla doctrine does not constitute just another governmental infringement of constitutional rights. Instead, it constitutes the destruction of freedom in America. "Oh, Mr. Hornberger, you go too far! Don't you know that here in America, people have the right to vote and to protest? Do you see the military arresting them? And here in America, people have freedom of speech. Do you see the military arresting newspaper editors?" They're missing the point. When the executive branch of our government implemented the Padilla doctrine, it crossed its own Rubicon in terms of freedom in America. Under the Padilla doctrine, executive branch officials, including the military authorities, have the power to arrest any citizen and punish him, even execute him, without indicting him, giving him a trial, according him due process of law, or letting him retain an attorney to battle on his behalf. All the government has to do is secure a paper from the president labeling an American citizen as an "enemy combatant" in the "war on terrorism" and the military authorities are then free to inflict any punishment on any citizen whatsoever, and without any external restraints whatsoever. The Padilla doctrine applies to every American, including newspaper editors, protesters, and people who vote the wrong way. Once the president triggers the process by formally labeling a person an "enemy combatant," the unrestrained power of the U.S. military to take that person into custody and execute him is unleashed. The Padilla doctrine is not simply another infringement of liberty, but instead makes freedom in America a dead letter. How can a person be considered truly free when his own government has the omnipotent power to punish him without according him the procedural guarantees provided in the Constitution and Bill of Rights?

[COMMENT]****** Is anyone paying attention? *******

posted by A Curmudgeon 5:20 PM