Political Quotes

“I also point out these provisions raise serious questions as to who we are as a society and what our Constitution seeks to protect. One section of these provisions, section 1031, could be interpreted as allowing the military to capture and indefinitely detain American citizens on U.S. soil. Section 1031 essentially repeals the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 by authorizing the military to perform law enforcement functions on American soil. That alone should alarm my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. But there are other problems with these provisions that must be resolved. These detainee provisions are unnecessary, counterproductive, and potentially harmful to our counterterrorism efforts. I know I have said this a couple of times already, but it feels as though they are being rushed through in a manner that does not serve us well. The Department of Defense has had little input. There have been no hearings. Earlier this week the changes were presented to us in the Armed Services Committee just hours before we were asked to vote on them. These are just too important a set of questions to let them pass without a thorough review and far greater understanding of their effect on our national security and our fight against terrorism. It feels to this Senator that we are rushing hastily to address a solution in search of a problem. We ought to hear from the Department of Defense, the intelligence community, our colleagues, and other relevant committees before we act.…”