I recently ran a couple of columns (here and here) and postings criticizing President Obama’s assertion of the right to kill citizens as a presidential prerogative. It now appears that he has delegated the selection of targets for killings to a panel of unnamed officials who determine which people should be killed without a trial or even a charge. When it comes to citizens like Anwar al-Awlaki, the killings raise serious constitutional problems that are being kept from the courts by the Administration.
The identity of the members of the death panel are secret. There is no public record of their decisions or the basis for the kill order. Indeed, neither the target nor the public will necessarily know that it was this panel that ordered the killing.
While civil libertarians are raising voices of concern over such extrajudicial killings of citizens, the Obama Administration has portrayed “the killing of Awlaki as a demonstration of President Barack Obama’s toughness toward militants who threaten the United States.” It has worked. Even conservatives are cheering the killings of the two citizens. Apparently, death panels in health care are enough to rally thousands in opposition but an actual death panel produces nary a yawn if the targets are hated. The fear is that this is how the rule of law dies — to the cheers and thunderous applause of citizens.
The results of the panel are simply submitted to the President, who retains the authority to countermand their decisions.
Obama has the distinction of putting the first citizen on the list. As noted in the earlier postings, Bush killed a citizen who was riding with a target, but Obama outdid his predecessor again in ordering the killing of a citizen.
Source: Reuters
And some folks still believe in the tooth fairy….I am not a proponent of Global Warming…I am a proponent of the shifting axis….but there is more to agree with Gore on than Bush….and even including Obama..
24% Consider Al Gore An Expert On Global Warming
Despite winning a Nobel Prize and an Oscar for his work in the global warming area, most voters don’t consider former Vice President Al Gore an expert on the subject.
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/current_events/environment_energy/24_consider_al_gore_an_expert_on_global_warming
New Rasmussen Poll Sends Al Gore Into Meltdown
A new Rasmussen poll shows the American public trusts the objectivity and credibility of impassioned global warming “scientists” about as much as used car salesmen, and boy is Al Gore ticked. If Michele Bachmann is Newsweek‘s Queen of Rage, Al Gore must be America’s potty-mouthed King of Bizarre Temper Tantrums.
According to Rasmussen Reports, 69% of Americans say it is at least somewhat likely that some climate scientists have falsified research data to support their own theories and beliefs, including 40% who say it is “very likely” scientists have done so. Only 22% of poll respondents do not think it is likely that some scientists have falsified research data, with 10% undecided.
Even most Democrats no longer trust increasingly activist climate scientists to tell the truth about scientific data.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jamestaylor/2011/08/10/new-rasmussen-poll-sends-al-gore-into-meltdown/
Yeah maybe then but look at him now.
24 hours of climate reality BAW HA HA HA HA
Americans are beginning to get educated on the so-called science of global warming. They are no longer believing Gore hook, line and sinker. The more America becomes informed, the more they turn away from the global warming propaganda.
In a poll of 1,500 adults by the Pew Research Center for the People&the Press, released Thursday, the number of people saying there is strong scientific evidence that the Earth has gotten warmer over the past few decades is down from 71 percent in April of last year and from 77 percent when Pew started asking the question in 2006. The number of people who see the situation as a serious problem also has declined.
The steepest drop has occurred during the past year, as Congress and the Obama administration have taken steps to control heat-trapping emissions for the first time and international negotiations for a new treaty to slow global warming have been under way. At the same time, there has been mounting scientific evidence of climate change — from melting ice caps to the world’s oceans hitting the highest monthly recorded temperatures this summer.
Since 2006, across every party line including Democrats the belief that there is evidence that global warming exists has gone down drastically. Democrats has seen a drop of -16%, Republicans -24 and Independents -26%.
http://people-press.org/2009/10/22/fewer-americans-see-solid-evidence-of-global-warming/
Correction:
Bdaman,
I happen to think that if Gore had been actually selected after he had been elected to office that we would not have a lot of this financial woe that we have today……Nor would we be fighting a Bush War….
Count me in as being a Democrat on that day…..
raff,
Yes…what happened to that “Transparency” thingy…..
Bdaman,
I happen to think that if Gore had been actually he selected after he had been elected to office that we would not have a lot of this financial woe that we have today……
Count me in as being a Democrat on that day…..
AY,
I recall the movie. This secret group needs a little sunshine on them to expose who they are and what they do.
If Al Gore had become president we would not be in this mess.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA
ROTFLMFAO
http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/2011/10/05/senator-harry-reid-takes-a-stand-against-ndaa/
Anonymously Yours 1, October 6, 2011 at 1:51 pm
Geeze….and when I posted the thought of this being akin to the Star Chamber…it was kind of poo pooed
================================
Gene and Jill mentioned it too, as did I.
raff,
In my reading the star chamber had no ultimate authority…If I recall in reading that it was used in England to decide who was Jewish and worthy of expelling…Not to be confused with the later Court of the Star Chamber that decided cases of Treason…which had roots in a single united Monarchy…England and Scotland….then the rules and proceeding changed….
I seem to recall seeing a movie in the early 80’s staring Michael Douglass…that exacted revenge on people getting away with murder on a technical….like 1983 or so…I think it was called Star Chamber….based in Hollywood…
In the Reuters article that Prof. Turley linked to, there was a very interesting statement that was made by the administration sources: “They confirmed that lawyers, including those in the Justice Department, were consulted before Awlaki’s name was added to the target list.” http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/05/us-cia-killlist-idUSTRE79475C20111005
If this true, it must mean that John Yoo and Alberto Gonzalez are working for the Obama Administration!
Welcome to your new reality. Get comfortable, we’ll be here for awhile.
Jill,
It is what it is…even people you normally disagree with…if you are open minded enough they will eventually say something you agree with….Just for the record….
AN,
Thank you…
there’s not enough chocolate in the whole dam world…….
Jill, It’s always good to see your postings. And today’s comments are spot-on.
AY, Regarding, “this being akin to the Star Chamber”, I agreed with you
when you wrote it…, but didn’t comment… I was probably all out of steam, at the time…
AY’s comment:
http://jonathanturley.org/2011/10/04/the-hit-list-the-public-applauds-as-president-obama-kills-two-citizens-as-a-presidential-prerogative/#comment-274462
There are domestic twists to this insanity, but the truth has yet to come to light… I trust that it will.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2011/10/secret_panel_can_put_americans_on_kill_list.php?ref=fpc
Geeze….and when I posted the thought of this being akin to the Star Chamber…it was kind of poo pooed…Oh well…let the Kos run it….I’ve already expressed my thoughts….