Ashcroft Degrades American Democracy

[struggle4progress]

The Justice Department yesterday made a transparent attempt to shore up its position in a pending Supreme Court case by releasing information it claims to have gleaned from interrogations of Jose Padilla, a U.S. citizen held for two years without legal representation. In doing so, the government further violated Padilla's rights to due process and the presumption of innocence. With legal actions still pending, the Justice Department released a declassified summary of information – obtained after two years of interrogations with no attorney present – which it says implicates Padilla in terrorist plots in the U.S.

Federal courts have consistently ruled that the Bush administration's detention of Padilla is illegal. The designation of Padilla as an "enemy combatant" with no basic legal rights violates constitutional laws. The U.S. Court of Appeals concluded that "based on the text of the Constitution and the cases interpreting it, we reject that the President has inherent constitutional power to detain Padilla under the circumstances presented here." The court also stated that Padilla is "entitled to the constitutional protections extended to other citizens."

The public release of information obtained without proper legal representation and the opportunity for cross-examination violates all notions of due process of law. Attorney General Ashcroft and the Bush administration were clearly trying to influence the imminent Supreme Court decision in the Padilla case, as well as any future government cases, by releasing prejudicial information which Padilla has had no opportunity to challenge and which has never been tested in a court of law.

Stoking fears about terrorism and undermining our judicial system degrades American democracy and does not make us safer. The public release of one-sided information on the eve of a Supreme Court decision does nothing to increase our security. Instead, it further degrades and undermines public confidence in the integrity of our system of justice—both at home and abroad.

http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=85174

[donhakman]

1. !

[indepat]

2. Does anyone really believe Ashcroft cares a whit how many freaking laws,

how many provisions of the Constitution he and his minions break/fail to uphold?

[jbfam4]

3. Why should he?

Not one person in this administration has been accountable for worng doing. Time to throw someone under the bus.

[struggle4progress]

4. Well, if we make him nervous enough, he'll pretend to care.