In case I disappear

[Guest guest]

In Case I Disappear

By William Rivers Pitt

Sep 29 2006

 

I have been told a thousand times at least, in the

years I have spent reporting on the astonishing and

repugnant abuses, lies and failures of the Bush

administration, to watch my back. " Be careful, " people

always tell me. " These people are capable of anything.

Stay off small planes, make sure you aren't being

followed. " A running joke between my mother and me is

that she has a " safe room " set up for me in her cabin

in the woods, in the event I have to flee because of

something I wrote or said.

 

I always laughed and shook my head whenever I heard

this stuff. Extreme paranoia wrapped in the tinfoil of

conspiracy, I thought. This is still America, and

these Bush fools will soon pass into history, I

thought. I am a citizen, and the First Amendment

hasn't yet been red-lined, I thought.

 

Matters are different now.

 

It seems, perhaps, that the people who warned me were

not so paranoid. It seems, perhaps, that I was not

paranoid enough. Legislation passed by the Republican

House and Senate, legislation now marching up to the

Republican White House for signature, has shattered a

number of bedrock legal protections for suspects,

prisoners, and pretty much anyone else George W. Bush

deems to be an enemy.

 

So much of this legislation is wretched on the

surface. Habeas corpus has been suspended for

detainees suspected of terrorism or of aiding

terrorism, so the Magna Carta-era rule that a person

can face his accusers is now gone. Once a suspect has

been thrown into prison, he does not have the right to

a trial by his peers. Suspects cannot even stand in

representation of themselves, another ancient

protection, but must accept a military lawyer as their

defender.

 

Illegally-obtained evidence can be used against

suspects, whether that illegal evidence was gathered

abroad or right here at home. To my way of thinking,

this pretty much eradicates our security in persons,

houses, papers, and effects, as stated in the Fourth

Amendment, against illegal searches and seizures.

 

Speaking of collecting evidence, the torture of

suspects and detainees has been broadly protected by

this new legislation. While it tries to delineate what

is and is not acceptable treatment of detainees, in

the end, it gives George W. Bush the final word on

what constitutes torture. US officials who use cruel,

inhumane or degrading treatment to extract information

from detainees are now shielded from prosecution.

 

It was two Supreme Court decisions, Hamdi v. Rumsfeld

and Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, that compelled the creation of

this legislation. The Hamdi decision held that a

prisoner has the right of habeas corpus, and can

challenge his detention before an impartial judge. The

Hamdan decision held that the military commissions set

up to try detainees violated both the Uniform Code of

Military Justice and the Geneva Conventions.

 

In short, the Supreme Court wiped out virtually every

legal argument the Bush administration put forth to

defend its extraordinary and dangerous behavior. The

passage of this legislation came after a scramble by

Republicans to paper over the torture and murder of a

number of detainees. As columnist Molly Ivins wrote on

Wednesday, " Of the over 700 prisoners sent to Gitmo,

only 10 have ever been formally charged with anything.

Among other things, this bill is a CYA for torture of

the innocent that has already taken place. "

 

It seems almost certain that, at some point, the

Supreme Court will hear a case to challenge the

legality of this legislation, but even this is

questionable. If a detainee is not allowed access to a

fair trial or to the evidence against him, how can he

bring a legal challenge to a court? The legislation,

in anticipation of court challenges like Hamdi and

Hamdan, even includes severe restrictions on judicial

review over the legislation itself.

 

The Republicans in Congress have managed, at the

behest of Mr. Bush, to draft a bill that all but

erases the judicial branch of the government. Time

will tell whether this aspect, along with all the

others, will withstand legal challenges. If such a

challenge comes, it will take time, and meanwhile

there is this bill. All of the above is deplorable on

its face, indefensible in a nation that prides itself

on Constitutional rights, protections and the rule of

law.

 

Underneath all this, however, is where the paranoia

sets in.

 

Underneath all this is the definition of " enemy

combatant " that has been established by this

legislation. An " enemy combatant " is now no longer

just someone captured " during an armed conflict "

against our forces. Thanks to this legislation, George

W. Bush is now able to designate as an " enemy

combatant " anyone who has " purposefully and materially

supported hostilities against the United States. "

 

Consider that language a moment. " Purposefully and

materially supported hostilities against the United

States " is in the eye of the beholder, and this

administration has proven itself to be astonishingly

impatient with criticism of any kind. The broad powers

given to Bush by this legislation allow him to

capture, indefinitely detain, and refuse a hearing to

any American citizen who speaks out against Iraq or

any other part of the so-called " War on Terror. "

 

If you write a letter to the editor attacking Bush,

you could be deemed as purposefully and materially

supporting hostilities against the United States. If

you organize or join a public demonstration against

Iraq, or against the administration, the same

designation could befall you. One dark-comedy aspect

of the legislation is that senators or House members

who publicly disagree with Bush, criticize him, or

organize investigations into his dealings could be

placed under the same designation. In effect, Congress

just gave Bush the power to lock them up.

 

By writing this essay, I could be deemed an " enemy

combatant. " It's that simple, and very soon, it will

be the law. I always laughed when people told me to be

careful. I'm not laughing anymore.

 

In case I disappear, remember this. America is an

idea, a dream, and that is all. We have borders and

armies and citizens and commerce and industry, but all

this merely makes us like every other nation on this

Earth. What separates us is the idea, the simple idea,

that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are

our organizing principles. We can think as we please,

speak as we please, write as we please, worship as we

please, go where we please. We are protected from the

kinds of tyranny that inspired our creation as a

nation in the first place.

 

That was the idea. That was the dream. It may all be

over now, but once upon a time, it existed. No good

idea ever truly dies. The dream was here, and so was

I, and so were you.

_______

 

 

About author William Rivers Pitt [0] is a New York

Times and internationally bestselling author of two

books: War on Iraq: What Team Bush Doesn't Want You to

Know and The Greatest Sedition Is Silence. His newest

book, House of Ill Repute: Reflections on War, Lies,

and America's Ravaged Reputation, will be available

this winter from PoliPointPress.

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/trackback/1189