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Attorney General Has Dangerous Attitudes
About the ConstitutionTuesday, January 23, 2007
By John F. McManus
ARTICLE SYNOPSIS:
During his recent appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez denied the existence of a grant of habeas corpus in the Constitution. His dangerous attitude is consistent with other alarming pronouncements he has made in the past.
Follow this link to the source article: "Gonzales: 'There Is No Express Grant of Habeas Corpus In The Constitution'"
COMMENTARY:
The Constitution states in Article I, Section 9: "The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it."
If some right of the people cannot be suspended except in cases of extreme action endangering the nation, then the right exists for all except for some persons in those rare situations. Yet, Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez told Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa.): "There is no express grant of habeas corpus in the Constitution. There is a prohibition against taking it away." Sen. Specter rightly accused the nation's chief law enforcement officer of "violating common sense." But more than common sense is being violated. Gonzalez seems to be claiming power to violate a very important right possessed by every American.
While serving as White House Counsel in 2002, Gonzalez sought to justify going to war without a congressional declaration in remarks given to group of young military officers at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. Peppered by questions afterward, he sought to reassure his audience but refused to back down. He tried to end the discussion by urging the officers who were facing assignment to combat in a war about to start to merely "Trust us." Instructor David Henderson promptly reminded him that the "Constitution is not based on trust, but on distrust."
Had there been a declaration of war by Congress rather than the congressional permission to enforce UN resolutions, the entire effort in Iraq would likely have taken a decidedly different course. A declaration of war would name an enemy such as the Iraqi government. It would not send men into battle to fight a tactic, terrorism, and then allow the goal to be altered to building democracy. But Gonzalez approved the Bush plan to start the war without the Constitution's requirement for a congressional declaration. That the war has been a calamity is what worried the young officers at that class in Monterey seven months before it began.
Neither Sen. Specter nor the young officers asked Gonzalez about the Tenth Amendment's prohibition against assuming powers that are not specifically delegated in the Constitution. Based on his attitude regarding habeas corpus, it seems likely that he would skirt the Tenth's limitations as well. The man is dangerous, and so are those who gave him the powerful office he holds.
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