On the recordNovember 18, 2011
in a short while I hope we will have, and expect that we will have, some amendments that have been cleared on both sides that we are going to be able to offer and hopefully adopt. What I thought I would do now is make a fairly lengthy statement about statements which have been made relative to the detainee provisions in S. 1867. First, I want to comment on the statements that were made in the Statement of Administration Policy--this is a so- called SAP. So when I refer to SAP during these comments, and I use that term, it is the acronym which means Statement of Administration Policy. I am going to first quote exactly from the SAP, and then I am going to comment and show why these statements I am referring to are inaccurate. From the SAP: Section 1031 attempts to expressly codify the detention authority that exists under the authorization for Use of Military Force. The authorization for use of military force is referred to as the AUMF. The quote continues: The authorities granted by the AUMF, including the detention authority, are essential to our ability to protect the American people from the threat posed by al-Qaida and its associated forces, and have enabled us to confront the full range of threats this country faces from those organizations and individuals. Well, Mr. President, given how important the administration says these authorities are, it should be helpful to have them codified so they can stand on the strongest possible footing.…





