The American people are rightfully outraged that enemy combatants who have declared war on America are being tried in civilian courts. I firmly believe that terrorists, with known ties to Al Qaeda, an organization that has sworn to destroy America and all that it stands for, should not be afforded the same constitutional protections as American citizens. Just as important, I believe that the corresponding release of sensitive homeland security and intelligence information, which will be required in civilian court proceedings, will jeopardize the safety and security of the United States.
That's why I have drafted legislation requiring terrorists to be tried as enemy combatants. The Obama Administration has announced it intends to try various terrorists in the United States in civilian courts.
My legislation is cosponsored by leading national experts, the vice chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Congressman Lamar Smith of Texas and the vice chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Congressman Howard McKeon of California.
My bill will take away the discretion to try terrorists in civilian court and mandate that they always be treated as enemy combatants and brought before a military tribunal.
In November Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the Administration would try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the 9/11 attacks in civilian courts in New York. In December, the terrorist who attempted to blow up Northwest Airlines flight 253 as it landed in Detroit, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, was taken into custody by the FBI, and arraigned in civilian court in Detroit. Now, reports indicate that the Obama administration will try another of the terrorists suspected of being involved in the 9/11 plot in Federal District Court in Washington D.C.
