Vern Buchanan H.R.478 Requires Terrorists to be Tried as Enemy Combatants, Not Common Criminals

Rep. Buchanan Seeks Cosponsors to the Military Tribunals for Terrorists Act Rep. Vern Buchanan (FL-13) Bill Summary & Status 112th Congress (2011 - 2012) H.R.478 Washington, Jan 31 - This week, Rep. Buchanan introduced H.R. 478, the “Military Tribunals for Terrorists Act.” This legislation mandates that any terrorist who attacks the United States or its people be interrogated, prosecuted and tried in military court, not civilian court.

Using military tribunals to interrogate, prosecute, and sentence foreign terrorists who conspire, attempt, or attack the United States and its people is a far better way to handle these kinds of cases. Military tribunals protect U.S. intelligence from being revealed in open court.

Congressman Jim Jordan is Chairman of the Republican Study Committee (RSC). ###

Requires Terrorists to be Tried as Enemy Combatants, Not Common Criminals

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Vern Buchanan (FL-13) introduced legislation requiring terrorists to be tried as enemy combatants, not common criminals. Buchanan’s bill, the “Military Tribunals for Terrorists Act” will mandate that any terrorist who attacks the United States or its people be interrogated, prosecuted and tried in military court, not civilian court.

“The American people are outraged that foreign terrorists who have declared war on America are being tried in civilian courts,”said Buchanan, Florida’s only member of the powerful Ways & Means Committee. “Terrorists with ties to known terror organizations such as al Qaeda should not be afforded the same constitutional protections as American citizens, nor should sensitive homeland security and intelligence information be publicized in open, civilian court proceedings.”

Buchanan’s bill, which he first introduced in the 111th session of Congress, is co-sponsored by three leading national security experts: the Chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI); the Chairman of the Armed Services Committee, Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-CA); the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX).

“Foreign terrorists are just that, foreign citizens who terrorize the United States – not common criminals,” said U.S. Rep. Rogers. “They are not entitled to the same rights as U.S. citizens and should be treated as such. Congressman Buchanan’s bill ensures that they are treated as enemy combatants who are interrogated for valuable intelligence and tried in military tribunals, not U.S. civilian courts.”

McKeon said, “Rep. Buchanan’s efforts will make our country safer. Terrorists who are engaged in a war against America must be treated as enemy combatants—not common criminals—and should be prosecuted in accordance with the laws of warfare.”

Chairman Smith added: “The first Gitmo detainee trial in civilian courts was a near disaster. Though Ahmed Ghailani was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies, he was only convicted of one count out of 285 charges. And the case isn’t over yet. Because Ghailani was acquitted of terrorism and murder charges, his attorneys will try to overturn the conspiracy verdict on appeal.

“Terrorists are enemy combatants, not common criminals. They commit acts of war against the American people, not crimes. They should be tried at military commissions, not in civilian courts where they have access to the same rights as U.S. citizens. The Military Tribunals for Terrorists Act makes sure that foreign terrorists are tried in military tribunals, not civilian courts. Military tribunals have served the nation well since the Revolutionary War and we should continue to use them.”

“Using military tribunals to interrogate, prosecute, and sentence foreign terrorists who conspire, attempt, or attack the United States and its people is a far better way to handle these kinds of sensitive matters,” Buchanan said. “Military tribunals protect U.S. intelligence sources and methods from being revealed in open court.”

The decision to prosecute these terrorists in civilian court was made by the Attorney General and the Justice Department. Buchanan’s bill, the “Military Tribunals for Terrorists Act”, would take away the discretion to try terrorists in civilian court and mandate that they always be treated as enemy combatants and brought before a military tribunal.

Bill Summary & Status 112th Congress (2011 - 2012) H.R.478

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TEXT CREDIT: House Republican Study Committee 1524 Longworth House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 226-9717 Fax: (202) 226-1633 rsc@mail.house.gov

TEXT CREDIT: buchanan.house.gov Washington D.C. Office • 221 Cannon HOB • Washington, D.C. 20515 • Phone: (202) 225-5015 • Fax: (202) 226-0828 •

Governor Jan Brewer Applauds Decision by Florida U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson in ObamaCare Lawsuit

Florida Judge Issues Summary Judgment in Favor of States’ Rights PHOENIX – Governor Jan Brewer today hailed the ruling by Florida U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson as a major victory for states’ rights in its finding that the individual mandate in ObamaCare, which requires everyone to purchase federally-approved health care or pay a penalty beginning in 2014, is an unprecedented and unconstitutional application of the Commerce Clause. “I knew ObamaCare was unaffordable and unsustainable, and today’s court ruling confirms that it is unconstitutional, as well,” said Governor Jan Brewer.

“Our country was founded on the concepts of individual liberty and state sovereignty, not federal mandates and penalties. So I applaud the court for doing its duty in upholding the Constitution, and I look forward to leading the continued fight against this federal monstrosity.”

In a 78-page decision, Judge Vinson ruled for summary judgment in favor of the 26 states regarding the individual mandate provision, striking down every single argument offered by the Obama Administration in its failed effort to justify why Congress should have the power to require its citizens to buy any good or service as a condition of lawful residence in the United States. Moreover, the court held that the individual mandate is not severable from the rest of the act and, therefore, the entire act must be declared void.

In his ruling Judge Vinson said, “Never before has Congress required that everyone buy a product from a private company (essentially for life) just for being alive and residing in the United States.” The Judge went on later to note that if Congress has the power to compel an otherwise passive individual into a commercial transaction with a third party merely by asserting that the transaction is commerce, then “the enumeration of powers in the Constitution would have been in vain for it would be ‘difficult to perceive any limitation on federal
power… and we would have a Constitution in name only. Surely this is not what the Founding Fathers could have intended.”

As the Governor stated in her letter to Secretary Sebelius last week, Arizona is in a struggle for
survival. The Medicaid program is slowly taking over Arizona’s state budget. State obligations for Medicaid have grown from 17 percent of the state General Fund in FY2007 to 29 percent in FY2011. During that time, spending on Medicaid has soared by 63 percent, while the state has slashed spending in almost all other areas of government. This cannot be sustained. Arizona’s deficit is $763 million in FY2011 and a staggering $1.2 billion in FY2012.

In previous rulings, the Court acknowledged the critical point made by the states in that ObamaCare forces upon them the choice of either accepting the sweeping changes to Medicaid, which will “explode their state budgets,” or withdrawing from the system entirely. ObamaCare transforms Medicaid from a federal-state partnership to reimburse needy persons’ medical costs into a vast federally-mandated program to benefit millions of persons with incomes above the poverty line. The Act now limits state flexibility and turns the states into an administrative arm of the federal government.

Today’s decision striking down ObamaCare in its entirety has a direct impact upon the federal Medicaid requirement from which Governor Brewer sought a waiver last week. If the federal health plan is unconstitutional, she said, it follows that the maintenance-of-effort funding requirement it implemented upon the states would be unconstitutional, as well.

“I hope that federal officials’ take today’s decision into account when reviewing the waiver request that I submitted last week,” said Governor Brewer. ###

Governor Jan Brewer Applauds Decision in ObamaCare Lawsuit - 1/31/2011 in PDF FORMAT

TEXT CREDIT: State of Arizona. Janice K. Brewer Governor Office of the Governor 1700 West Washington Street, Phoenix, AZ 85007 Main Phone: 602-542-4331 Facsimile: 602-542-7601 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 31, 2011 CONTACT: Tasya Peterson (602) 542-1361 tpeterson@az.gov