SPRINGFIELD, Virginia- Today, Campaign for Liberty President John Tate released the following statement in response to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder asserting that President Obama has the legal authority to conduct drone strikes on American citizens on American soil:
“On March 4, Attorney General Eric Holder addressed Senator Rand Paul’s concern about whether or not the Obama Administration has the legal authority to conduct lethal drone strikes on American citizens on U.S. soil by saying, in part, ‘It is possible, I suppose, to imagine an extraordinary circumstance in which it would be necessary and appropriate under the Constitution and applicable laws of the United States for the President to authorize the military to use lethal force within the territory of the United States.’
“As Senator Paul stated in response, ‘The U.S. Attorney General’s refusal to rule out the possibility of drone strikes on American citizens and on American soil is more than frightening – it is an affront to the Constitutional due process rights of all Americans.’
“Every American should be outraged at the Obama Administration’s unprecedented claim that the President can act like a brutal king and assassinate American citizens on U.S. soil. This is a clear violation of the Fifth Amendment, which guarantees all Americans the right to due process, and which should be clearly understood by our nation’s top law enforcement official, as well as our Nobel Peace Prize-winning and constitutional law professor President. The idea should have been rejected out of hand.
“As the President recently said, he is not a dictator, but this type of language from his administration leads us to believe he does not understand the distinction, and that internal policy is different from his public rhetoric. Senator Paul has done a great service by continuing to fight for a straight answer from the administration on this issue.
“I urge all Americans to contact their Senators and Representative to demand they join with Senator Paul in seeking more answers from Eric Holder and the White House on their unconstitutional drone program.”
Read the Attorney General’s entire letter to Senator Paul HERE.
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PDFTags: Campaign for Liberty, Rand Paul, John McCardell, Obama, civil liberties, drones, Eric Holder