Bad Day for Terrorist-Lovin’ Liberals: Military Tribunal, Not Civilian Trial in NYC, May Now Be in Store for Self-Proclaimed 9/11 Terrorists

March 2010
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
« Feb		Apr »
	1	2	3	4	5	6
7	8	9	10	11	12	13
14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27
28	29	30	31

Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on March 5, 2010

Another Team Obama flip-flop… this one for the better. Trying the self-proclaimed 9/11 head honcho terrorist Khalid Sheik Mohammed and his jihadi cohorts in a civilian trial in New York City has always been a horrifically bad idea.

Now, Pres. Obama may be reversing his REVISED original decision for a New York civilian trial (AG Eric Holder is being thrown under the bus… again) and switch instead to a military tribunal for the anti-American, bloodthirsty jihadists (it’s not the first time for the White House to release this “no civilian trial” information and then reverse on it… remember this from January?: Celebration Time, New Yorkers: Sanity Has Finally Prevailed… NYC Is No Longer Location for 9/11 Jihadist Terrorists’ Trial).

As we’ve seen before, it ain’t over ’til it’s over with this flaky administration. Another flip-flop could occur at any time… this could even be bogus information, a political “balloon” floated by BHO’s advisors. And what is going on about Guantánamo Bay? Nary a whisper lately about Obama’s jaw-droppingly stupid plan for jihadists to be moved from the luxurious maximum security terrorist facility in Cuba, referred to affectionately as Club Gitmo, to the state of Illinois.

From Gabriel Malor at Ace of Spades HQ: Et tu, Nameless Aides? White House Leaking that Obama Will Direct Holder to Send KSM to Military Tribunal:

An “anonymous source” whose name rhymes with Alm Remanuel is saying that White House advisors are planning to suggest that Khalid Sheik Mohamed and the other 9/11 plotters be put to trial before a military commission.

And by “planning to suggest” I mean, they’re floating this trial balloon to see how much the ACLU will squeal. So far there’s not been a peep from the Left, so expect the announcement to come any time in the next week.

Obama will do what he usually does: blame Bush for getting him into this mess, blame Republicans for not rolling over and taking it up the squeakhole, and then push it into Congress’ lap where congressional Democrats will quietly curse his name.

Here’s the spin at Washington Post…

From Washington Post, Obama advisers set to recommend military tribunals for alleged 9/11 plotters:

President Obama’s advisers are nearing a recommendation that Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the self-proclaimed mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, be prosecuted in a military tribunal, administration officials said, a step that would reverse Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.’s plan to try him in civilian court in New York City.

The president’s advisers feel increasingly hemmed in by bipartisan opposition to a federal trial in New York and demands, mainly from Republicans, that Mohammed and his accused co-conspirators remain under military jurisdiction, officials said. While Obama has favored trying some terrorism suspects in civilian courts as a symbol of U.S. commitment to the rule of law, critics have said military tribunals are the appropriate venue for those accused of attacking the United States.

If Obama accepts the likely recommendation of his advisers, the White House may be able to secure from Congress the funding and legal authority it needs to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and replace it with a facility within the United States. The administration has failed to meet a self-imposed one-year deadline to close Guantanamo.

The administration officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said the president’s legal advisers are finalizing their review of the cases of Mohammed and four alleged co-conspirators. Asked about the process, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said that “no decisions have been made.”

Privately, administration officials are bracing for the ire of disappointed liberals and even some government lawyers should the administration back away from promises to use civilian courts to adjudicate the cases of some of the 188 detainees who remain at Guantanamo.

Marine Col. Jeffrey Colwell, acting chief defense counsel at the Defense Department’s Office of Military Commissions, said it would be a “sad day for the rule of law” if Obama decides not to proceed with a federal trial. “I thought the decision where to put people on trial — whether federal court or military commissions — was based on what was right, not what is politically advantageous,” Colwell said.

Administration officials said that an announcement could come soon and that they hoped to finalize their plans before Obama leaves for Indonesia on March 18.

Holder announced in a November statement that Mohammed and his co-defendants would be tried in a federal court in Lower Manhattan, hailing it as a “significant step forward in our efforts to close Guantánamo and to bring to justice those individuals who have conspired to attack our nation and our interests abroad.”

New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg (I) initially embraced the decision. But when a grass-roots opposition movement took off and cost estimates for security ballooned, Bloomberg and leading New York Democrats turned against the civilian trial. Others objected on national security grounds, arguing that a Manhattan trial could attract another attack.

Capital charges against Mohammed and his four co-defendants were withdrawn without prejudice and dismissed on Jan. 21 in what military prosecutors thought was a prelude to a transfer to Manhattan. But by February, there was near-universal opposition among activists and lawmakers in both parties to trying the case in New York.

In an interview with The Washington Post on Feb. 11, Holder gave his first public signal that he was open to returning to the military commission system. “At the end of the day, wherever this case is tried, in whatever forum, what we have to ensure is that it’s done as transparently as possible and with adherence to all the rules,” Holder said. “If we do that, I’m not sure the location or even the forum is as important as what the world sees in that proceeding.”

Top Obama advisers have been negotiating with Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) — a vocal critic of trying the Sept. 11 suspects in civilian court — in pursuit of a deal that would secure his help in closing Guantanamo. Graham has sought the creation a legal framework that would spell out how the government would detain and try future captives, but an administration official warned that a “grand bargain” is not likely in the immediate future. The official, also speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the talks with Graham have been mostly about “limited issues” involving the Mohammed trial and the future of Guantanamo.

[...]

To close the detention center at Guantanamo, the administration needs funding to acquire and refurbish a prison in the United States, probably a state-owned maximum-security facility in Thomson, Ill. Because Congress has barred the transfer to the United States of all detainees except those destined for prosecution, the White House needs legal authority to move prisoners it plans to hold in some form of indefinite detention.

An interagency review of all cases at Guantanamo Bay concluded that about 50 prisoners will have to be held in some form of prolonged detention without trial, because the evidence against them was obtained through the use of harsh interrogation methods or because its revelation in court would compromise intelligence gathering. The government says the detainees are too dangerous to release.

Categories: Government, International Relations, National Security, Social and Political Climate
Tags: 9-11, 9/11, attorney general, Attorney General Holder, Barack Obama, Club Gitmo, DOJ, Eric Holder, Guantánamo, Guantanamo Bay, Illinois, Islam, jihad, jihadi, jihadist, Justice Department, Khalid Sheik Mohammed, KSM, Muslim, New York City, NYC, Obama, political, politics, POTUS, Pres. Obama, Team Obama, terrorism, terrorist, terrorists, War on Terror, White House

About the author

Vicki McClure Davidson

I'm a conservative frugalist. My priorities: Watchdogging the government, making sure our tax dollars are spent wisely, living within our budgets (at home and in Washington, DC), and adhering to our Constitution and the conservative principles upon which it was developed by our founding fathers. Also, loving God, my family, and my country. Be wise, be frugal. God bless America!

Comments

Comments are closed.

Frugal Café Blog Zone

Search

Recent Posts

Archives