Neil Abercrombie: “I want to elaborate, if I might, on the remarks that I made with respect to the so-called antiterrorism bill earlier. As…”

“I want to elaborate, if I might, on the remarks that I made with respect to the so-called antiterrorism bill earlier. As members know, we are constrained by time in our remarks, and by having 5 minutes today, perhaps I can make a little more clear or elaborate a bit on what the grounds were for my opposition. Mr. Speaker, let me quote in part from a story written in today's Washington Post, as follows, excerpting from the story: It marks the first time in more than a century of law on the writ of habeas corpus that Federal judges would have to defer to State court determinations on whether a prisoner's constitutional rights were violated. A writ of habeas corpus is a way for Federal judges to assess whether a defendant's conviction is unconstitutional because, for example, his right to a fair trial was infringed. The writ orders the State to produce the prisoner, the body, or the corpus, so that he can make his case to a Federal court.”