Political Quotes

“Mr. President, the exchange with Senator Durbin was very good. The law of the land is pretty clear--unequivocal, in my view-- that an American citizen captured overseas can be held as an enemy combatant, and every enemy combatant held at Guantanamo Bay or captured in the United States has habeas rights. The Padilla case involves an individual who was captured in the United States, suspected of being an al-Qaida operative, and was held for 4 years. He appealed his case to the Fourth Circuit, and the Fourth Circuit said: You have a right to a lawyer to prepare your habeas case, but you do not have a right to a lawyer to interrupt the interrogation. You can be held as an enemy combatant, and they can gather intelligence for an indefinite period. That is the law of the land, and that is why the administration came over and said the provision that Carl and I were talking about really would change the law. They are preserving the ability, if they want to--they do not have to do this--basically, to hold an American. Here is the thought process for the body and the Nation: If you capture somebody--not just involved in terrorism; that is not just what we are talking about--al-Qaida operatives involved in an attack on the United States, if they are an American citizen--who cares?--if they are doing that, we want to know what they know, interrogate them and hold them for prosecution, or just hold them so they will not go back to the fight. That is the law.…”