*************************************************
From the Desk of Anthony Romero
Executive Director, ACLU
New Declaration of War, Torture Cover-up
Take action now at:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=UVl28bVXHZa_FYx-k3eH2Q..*************************************************
Dear ACLU Supporter,
A few days ago, we alerted you to Attorney General Michael
Mukasey's demand that Congress issue a new declaration of war.
This would make the entire globe -- including the United States itself
-- a "battlefield" where the president gets to decide who
is an "enemy combatant" and lock that person up forever.
The Bush/Mukasey plan also includes a congressionally-approved
subversion of the Constitution and a cover-up of the Bush
administration's systemic torture and abuse of detainees.
At the same time, an ACLU lawsuit has uncovered new evidence that the
torture and abuse Mukasey wants Congress to cover up was authorized by
-- you guessed it -- the Justice Department. One of the documents
obtained by the ACLU is a redacted version of a previously undisclosed
2002 Justice Department opinion that authorizes the CIA to use
specific interrogation methods, including waterboarding.
Now, Mukasey -- as head of the Justice Department -- wants Congress to
cover up torture committed under the watch of his predecessor,
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. It's outrageous!
Don't let it happen. Read the alert I've attached below
and take action now at:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=lm_i8EnJ_eqz14hA6iP1AA..Thank you for everything you do in defense of freedom.
Anthony D. Romero
Executive Director, ACLU
P.S. Here's the email Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the
ACLU's Washington Legislative Office, sent last week:
Dear ACLU Supporter,
Here they go again. On July 21st, Bush's Attorney General,
Michael Mukasey, called on Congress to take dramatic steps to subvert
the Constitution.
Mukasey is demanding that Congress issue a new declaration of war that
would make the entire globe -- including the United States itself -- a
"battlefield" where the president decides who will be
locked up forever.
Instead of ending the Bush system of injustice, he wants Congress to
make it permanent.
Tell Congress to reject the Bush/Mukasey plan to subvert the
Constitution:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=5tg8cBKlbJMPp7W7nd0i0g..Not only has Bush's Attorney General called on Congress to issue
a new declaration of war, but he is also asking Congress to:
1. Gut habeas corpus -- the freedom that protects people from being
thrown in prison illegally -- with no help, no end in sight and no due
process.
2. Cover up the Bush administration's systemic torture and abuse
of detainees. Judges would not be allowed to see evidence of torture
and abuse and would instead simply have to trust that a president is
holding the right people as "enemy combatants."
With only five weeks left in the congressional schedule and only six
months left in the Bush presidency, Mukasey's power grab should
be laughed out of town. But, given this Congress' track record,
the Mukasey proposal is no laughing matter.
Tell Congress to reject the Bush/Mukasey plan to subvert the
Constitution:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=DR1dNVYWf7B8heJogd8hTg..Too many times, we've seen Congress cave in to the most
outrageous Bush demands for out-of-control powers: The Patriot Act.
National Security Letters. The Military Commissions Act. The Protect
America Act. And, most recently, the congressional sell-out on FISA.
Four times the Supreme Court has rejected the Bush
administration's efforts to design a war on terror system of
injustice that defies the Constitution and mocks the rule of law. In
the past, the administration has responded, not by respecting the
Constitution, but by counting on Congress to legitimize its
indefensible conduct.
There is no way we can let that happen this time. Even as the House
Judiciary Committee investigates whether high-level Bush White House
officials may have committed crimes of torture and abuse, the Bush
administration has the arrogance to ask Congress to give it the power
to detain people without trial and hide torture and abuse from the
courts.
Tell Congress to reject the Bush/Mukasey plan to subvert the
Constitution:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=P4Iods6t5lJjjhj3H7lpzA..We can't take for granted that Congress will reject the
Bush/Mukasey plan. We have to meet this outrageous proposal with an
immediate wall of protest that says to Congress: "Don't
you dare."
I urge you to join defenders of freedom all across the country in
raising your voice against Attorney General Mukasey's dangerous
proposal.
Thanks for speaking out,
Caroline Fredrickson, Director
ACLU Washington Legislative Office
P.S. You can read a blog post from Christopher Anders, ACLU Seinor
Legislative Counsel, on the Bush/Mukasey plan to subvert the
constitution here:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=dqggGUB-Pad4IJgtAZVrPw..© ACLU, 125 Broad Street, 18th Floor New York, NY 10004
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