Assasination of US Citizens
The Obama administration has taken the rare step of authorising the killing of a US citizen, Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical Muslim cleric linked to the attempt to blow up a US airliner on Christmas Day.
The decision to place Awlaki on a US hit list followed a national security council review because of his status as an American citizen.
Guardian
I have tried to think of a similar order given by a POTUS against and individual American citizen, and have come up with nothing….so this decision appears to set a precedent for sure. The problem lies in the fact that a sitting POTUS had with a few words changed a criminal act to a state of war, and a cowed Congress bought the bill of goods. If one act so drastically changes that dynamic, and the precedence has been set, what is in place to prevent a similar ‘state of war’ against other groups….christian militia’s, tea parties who advocate overthrow of the government, violent anti-war protesters…..?
It will probably be held up as Constitutional however. I don’t care if al-Awlaki lives or dies, we simply need to use some visionary application to ensure that this precedent does become abused in the future.
Posted on April 8th, 2010 by Constitutional Insurgent
Filed under: Abuse of Power, Executive Branch
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