Pete Sessions: “habeas corpus--the right to have your complaints heard while in custody--is a part of our Constitution. But we have to…”

“habeas corpus--the right to have your complaints heard while in custody--is a part of our Constitution. But we have to remember habeas corpus did not mean everything in the whole world when it was adopted. So what did ``habeas'' mean? What does it mean today and at the time it was adopted? It was never, ever, ever, ever intended or imagined that during the War of 1812, if British soldiers were captured burning the Capitol of the United States--as they did--that they would have been given habeas corpus rights. It was never thought to be. Habeas corpus was applied to citizens, really, at that time. I believe that is so plain as to be without dispute. So to say: Habeas corpus, what does it mean? What did those words mean when the people ratified it? They did not intend to provide it to those who were attacking the United States of America. We provide special protections for prisoners of war who lawfully conduct a war that might be against the United States. We give them great protections. But unlawful combatants, the kind we are dealing with today, have never been given the full protections of the Geneva Conventions.”