Hi MC - >"open public military tribunal "
That's the problem - it is not open. These are secret, the process hasn't been defined, and there is no oversight or recourse, no rules of evidence yet determined, etc. It's an exaggeration to say that a member of the Executive branch can legally say get someone, shoot them, erase the records, and don't ask any questions; but not much of one.
It's like the joke in the Old West about someone you didn't like, or suspected of being a horse thief etc. - you would just say, "Give 'em a fair trial and hang 'em !".
It's too easy to create what LBJ called "a damn Murder Incorporated" that keeps going to eliminate both bad guys and, say, any embarassing evidence or witnesses. It's happened before, even without a tribunal to give color of legal authority. The military is well-trained to eliminate people - provide cover of legal authority, and that's exactly what will happen. It's therefore extremely important that legal authority be "open", as you say.
Under this new tribunal, any citizen (not of the U.S., so far) can be accused, arrested, tried, convicted, executed, and erased, all by order of a single member of the Executive Branch, without even the oversight or recourse that ordinary military court-marshals have, that the first set of WTC bombers had or the Nazis in the Neuremburg tribunals had, etc.
In addition, reducing domestic constitutional protections as well, could be fine, as long as it is temporary, shows results, and is fully accountable with reliable oversight. So far, we don't see results or accountability. FBI's "Magic Lantern" can be dropped into thousands of domestic US citizen-owned computers automatically by a single rubber-stamped order, with no requirement for reporting results, ever. You'll never know if Uncle Sam is watching what you type.
Extreme situations call for extreme measures, but this doesn't qualify as "national security", it's more like the beginnings of "don't worry, we have everything under control, we just can't tell you about it". Unless it's watched carefully, that ain't security, it's a take-over.
The fix for both military and domestic is easy: maintain credible oversight, keep records, don't summarily execute individuals. |
