Give me Liberty

Benjamin Franklin once said "those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."

Recently President Bush signed into law the Military Commissons Act of 2006. Although it has been hailed by many conservatives as a triumph in the war on terrorism I am have huge difficulty with finding the value of this new law. As an attorney it is hard to embrace something that contradicts one of our most basic legal rights as humans, the writ of habeas corpus.

The history of the writ of habeas corpus is a long one. The great legal scholar Blackstone cites the first recorded usage of habeas corpus in 1305, in the reign of King Edward I However, other writs were issued with the same effect as early as the reign of Henry II in the 12th century. Known as the "Great Writ", the writ of habeas corpus ad subjiciendum is a legal proceeding in which an individual held in custody can challenge the propriety of that custody under the law. The prisoner, or some other person on his behalf (for example, where the prisoner is being held incommunicado), may petition the court or an individual judge for a writ of habeas corpus. The writ of habeas corpus in common law countries is an important instrument for the safeguarding of individual freedom against arbitrary state action.
This procedure, part of English common law, was considered important enough to be specifically mentioned in the United States Constitution, which says, "The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it." (Article One, section nine).
Many legal and constitutional scholars contended that this Military Commissions Act is in direct opposition to habeas corpus, and the United States Bill of Rights. The recent case of Hamdi v. Rumsfeld re-confirmed the right of U.S. citizens to habeas corpus even when declared an enemy combant. Additionally, on June 29, 2006 in a 5-3 ruling the Supreme Court of the United States rejected Congress's attempts to strip the court of jurisdiction over habeas corpus appeals by detainees at Guantánamo Bay. Under the MCA, the law restricts habeas appeals for those detained as enemy combatants, or awaiting such determination. There is, however, no legal time limit which would force the government to provide a Combatant Status Review Tribunal hearing. Prisoners are legally prohibited from petitioning any court for any reason before a CSRT hearing takes place. It has been pointed out that the government can thus detain any noncitizen for any length of time, without habeas or any other appeal, by delaying the CSRT hearing indefinitely.
Isn’t the passing of this act doing the exact thing that the terrorist want. Destroying what America and the rest of the free world has stood for: “LIBERTY”! Haven’t we done exactly the opposite of what Benjamin Frankilin, one of our founding fathers, warned. We have given up the most basic essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety.
For me this is particularly troubling. I grew up in a Reagan Republican household with strong conservative principles. Particularly that the law is one the most important things to follow. If you don’t agree with the rules or the laws, you should follow them but work to change them. The rule of law and processed to change them must be followed or we have chaos and more important, NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW. Since my childhood I have found that I am nowhere nearly as conservative as my parents but still hold many conservative beliefs to heart. I do find myself voting for Republicans more often than not. However, I have lately found myself disagreeing with the current administration more often than I agree with them. I have definitely given them the benefit of the doubt more often that I believe I would have a Democratic administration. But now I believe we have crossed a line. The writ of habeas corpus is the thread that binds the fabric of all of our other rights guaranteed under the Bill of Rights together. Without it, the others are essentially meaningless. Sadly I believe the a majority of Republicans in office right now believe that they are doing what is best for the country but in reality are destroying what this country as always stood for. LIBERTY. We are playing right into the hands of our enemies. We are destroying ourselves from within.
Bush stated at the signing of the MCA "With the distance of history, the questions will be narrowed and few: Did this generation of Americans take the threat seriously, and did we do what it takes to defeat that threat?" He was talking about the threat of terrorism but I believe the bigger threat we are now facing is our own government. Will the American people take seriously the treat against all we hold dear, our Liberty, our Freedom?

Remember the words of Benjamin Franklin: “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."