Judge Napolitano on New DOJ Policy, Terrorist Bullseye on Conservatives’ Backs

Posted on 9 February, 2014 by Rick Wells





A Justice Department memo has surfaced which, at a minimum, states that it deems it acceptable and legal for the United States government to kill American civilians overseas under certain circumstances.
With the reputation for lawlessness of this administration and particularly the rogue Justice Department, this determination should be quite disconcerting to Americans who value our protections which are guaranteed by the Constitution. Trampling our freedom in the name of protecting freedom is insanity.
A bipartisan group of senators has sent a letter calling for the Obama administration to release all documents related to the drone policy and this memorandum.
The 16 page memo claims that the president or a high ranking US government official can kill anyone he wants, regardless of what the laws or Constitution says or even previous statements by Obama.
Judge Napolitano states that that viewpoint is “nowhere justifiable under the Constitution, nowhere justifiable under federal law. In fact, federal law and the Constitution are to the opposite. Unless you are actually pulling a trigger, or within moments of pulling that trigger or dropping a bomb, the government has an obligation to do it’s best to arrest you and charge you with a crime and prosecute you before it can indiscriminately kill you.”
According to the judge, there are at least three key points which are problematic with this memo:
The first is the slippery slope argument, that this power used today for what might be legitimate purposes could in the future be abused and used in a manner inconsistent with the Constitution and for which there may be no moral justification whatsoever.
The second concern is the vague method in which the document is written which could result in it being extrapolated in virtually any manner desired including to provide legal authority to kill Americans in the United States as well.
The third concern is the exclusion of Congress from the process. The president is required to notify the Senate and House Intelligence Committees ahead of time of any such changes in methodology of the conduct of the “war on terror.” Their consent is required, according to Judge Napolitano. The Obama administration has excluded Congress, which has the Congressional signatories upset.
In regards to a question regarding the definition of a terrorist and whether those in the homeland could be designated as such for their religious beliefs, being pro-life or other factors, Judge Napolitano recalls a memorandum issued by DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano.
The memorandum said, as recounted by Judge Napolitano, “People who are pro-life, people who believe in the right to keep and bear arms, returning veterans, people who think that the government is too big and the IRS is too powerful could be characterized as domestic terrorists.” The Judge continues, “Well, that group of people could characterize two thirds of the country, and this language, this frivolous use of language by this administration and then claiming they have the right to use force to stop dead in their tracks the people who fit into these categories violates the principles of the Declaration of Independence and violates the supremacy of the Constitution, which they’ve taken an oath to uphold. This is all very dangerous stuff. The government gets its powers from the consent of the governed, do you know anybody who consented to the government doing this?
There’s more on the video, and it’s well worth a look.
Rick Wells is a conservative Constitutionalist author who contributes to conservative media outlets. “Like” him on Facebook and “Follow” him on Twitter.

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