Thursday, December 1, 2011

US Senate discussing bill seriously attacking American civil liberties

The U.S. Senate has discussed new military funding bill. Document was completed by a controversial part diversifying laws of the army on the US territory. 

New bill called The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) will authorise $662 billion for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, military personel and national security. The amount of money will be $43 billion less than what Congress provided to the Pentagon in 2011. 

But it is not about the money. The document contains the proposal which will allow the army to arrest civilians suspected of being terrorists. There are no clear guarantees about the trial of arrested person. 

One of the senators, Rand Paul from Kentucky protested: "Under the provisions, wouldn't it be possible, then, that an American citizen could be declared an enemy combatant and sent to Guantanamo Bay and detained indefinitely?"

Former presidental candidate, who helped write out the relevant provision in the bill, respondend: "I think that as long as that individual, no matter who they are, if they pose a threat to the security of the United States of America, should not be allowed to continue that threat."

The document would be probably voted on Thursday, in case it would be accepted by the Senate, NDAA will still need to be signed by president Obama. 

If the bill would be accepted, it will be another document after 2001's Patriot Act which seriously attacks civil liberties. Until now, US citizens have been defended by law which didn`t let anyone to be detained without the trial, even those suspected of being terrorists. It is interesting that the idea of passing such document has shown up during the economic crisis which seems to be the greatest since 1920's.

source1/source2

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