My letter to the local paper re: the deployment of sea-smurf and the end of Posse Comitatus

[GimmeDANEger]

Today, for the first time in our nation's history, an army brigade is being assigned domestically. As reported on September 8 by Army Times, the 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team, renamed the CBRNE Consequence Management Response Force (CCMRF, or sea-smurf), will serve stateside under the command of NorthCom for a full year, after which they are planned to be replaced by another brigade. In the original Army Times article, handling "civil unrest and crowd control" was listed as one of CCMRF's responsibilities. Yesterday, the web site printed a correction, claiming that CCMRF would only be trained domestically for non-lethal crowd control (actual application of the techniques would occur abroad). Regardless, this deployment sets a dangerous precedent for our country.

Prior to 2007, the President would have received a two-year prison sentence under the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 for using the military domestically without congressional approval. This restriction was nullified with the post-Katrina passing of the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007, which renamed and reworded the Insurrection Act of 1807 (now the Enforcement of the Laws to Restore Public Order Act). Among the revisions, the President was granted the power to deploy military domestically in the case of a "natural disaster, epidemic, or other serious public health emergency, terrorist attack or incident, or other condition." Because of the vague phrase "other condition(s)," Bush has been able to dodge the consequences. With the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act, congress attempted to limit the power they had handed the President, but Bush (upon signing the bill) issued a statement that he did not recognize the restrictions. Sadly, congress has granted Bush a power that they has thus far been unable to take away.

It has long been a principle of our nation that domestic duties be left to civil law enforcement (National Guard and Coast Guard withstanding, in accordance with the Insurrection Act). Today, that very principle has been abandoned for security, and our country will be a little less free because of it.

[NYC_SKP]

1. Taking care of this kind of BushShit is on the "to-do" list.

For the next POTUS, Barack Obama.

:patriot: