Terrorists in custodySenate reaches deal on custody over terrorism suspects
On Tuesday several Senators from the Armed Services Committee reached an agreement on the controversial handling and prosecution of suspected terrorists; the agreement, struck by Senator Carl Levin (D-Michigan) and Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) would allow the military custody of all suspected terrorists except when the administration makes “a national security determination” to keep the detainee in civilian custody
Inmates at Guantanemo Bay // Source: yenra.com
On Tuesday several Senators from the Armed Services Committee reached an agreement on the controversial handling and prosecution of suspected terrorists.
The agreement, struck by Senator Carl Levin (D – Michigan), the chair of the Armed Services Committee, and Senator John McCain (R – Arizona), the ranking member, would allow the military custody of all suspected terrorists except when the administration makes “a national security determination” to keep the detainee in civilian custody.
The agreement would also allow the Attorney General to approve a transfer of a military detainee to civilian court for trial.
The latest deal comes in opposition to the administration’s policy and faces challenges from both sides of the aisle.
The chairs of the Senate Judiciary and Intelligence Committees say they were not consulted in the making of the deal and are opposed to it.
“The bill reported by the Armed Services Committee today does little to resolve our stated concerns and those of the administration about mandatory military custody, including the potential for this bill to create operational confusion and problems in the field,” argued the chair of the Judiciary Committee, Senator Patrick J. Leahy (D – Vermont).
Senator Diane Feinstein (D – California), echoed Leahy’s comments stating, “We have said before that these proposals are unwise and will harm our national security. That is as true today as it ever has been.”
The White House has continued to insist that the FBI should have full custody of al Qaeda terrorist suspects detained in the United States for its own interrogation purposes. The administration along with Senators Leahy and Feinstein maintain that terrorist suspects caught in the United States should be under the jurisdiction of civilian law enforcement agencies and that the military should not have custody.
The latest agreement paves the way forward for the controversial defense-policy bill which has been stalled in committee. In May the White House threatened to veto the annual defense authorization bill over language which would limit the president’s ability to transfer detainees overseas or try them in civilian courts.
The bill in question passed unanimously out of committee, but faces an uncertain future on the Senate floor. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid acknowledged that the bill was not fully supported by his party, but that the best option was to put it up for a vote.
