I do not fear computers. I fear the lack of them - Isaac Asimov

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

It seems that there are still some people in Congress who give a shit about the foundations of western law.  And they’re Democrats.

I’m told there’s an outside shot that House Democrats on the Armed Services Committee will put a restoration of habeas corpus into the Defense Department Authorization Bill being marked up tomorrow and Thursday.  Apparently Chairman Skelton has the votes but there are concerns about whether to have this fight now.

Now’s the time to let them know that this is something that we elected them to get done.  There’s a bit of fear that this vote could put freshmen members at risk, though I don’t really know why as the data on this isn’t compelling and the attack ads just didn’t work in 2006.

The most important members to contact are Ike Skelton, antiwar freshmen, and members of the Armed Services Committee.  Pelosi and Hoyer would be good too.  Each link below goes to that member’s email form, and their phone numbers are to the right.  I’ve only included Democratic members of the committee since the decision on whether to make a vote will be made within the party - the full list of Armed Service members is here.

Call and ask them to restore habeas corpus and put it in the Defense Department Authorization bill.  This is an especially important message to deliver to freshmen members who have the moral credibility of having been in elected in 2006 in the teeth of Republican fear-mongering.

How fucking pathetic is it that the Democrats, the fucking DEMOCRATS, the party who I have seen wiping its ass with the Constitution for most of my lifetime, working to restore habeas corpus rights to Americans.  Habeas corpus, for those of you who do not know, it is one of the pillars of all western democratic legal systems.  For example:

Blackstone cites the first recorded usage of habeas corpus ad subjiciendum in 1305, during the reign of King Edward I. However, other writs were issued with the same effect as early as the reign of Henry II in the 12th century. Blackstone explained the basis of the writ, saying: “The King is at all times entitled to have an account, why the liberty of any of his subjects is restrained, wherever that restraint may be inflicted.”

The procedure for the issuing of writs of habeas corpus was first codified by the Habeas Corpus Act 1679, following judicial rulings which had restricted the effectiveness of the writ. A previous act had been passed in 1640 to overturn a ruling that the command of the King was a sufficient answer to a petition of habeas corpus.

So this isn’t some malleable little idea that can be bent or discarded at will.  The Bush administration actively worked to undermine roughly 600 years of canonical democratic law.  And why?  So they could torture Arabs to get worthless information.

I’ve often parodied Howard Dean by saying that I hate the Democrats and everything they stand for.  Well, if they have the balls to stand up to the fucking Bush Republicans and officially restore canonical law then I say “You go, girl!”