[h=1]When Can the U.S. Kill Americans? The White House Won't Say.[/h] "Trust us." We won't abuse the license to kill. Neither will any subsequent administration. If you can't trust the federal government, who can you trust after all?
You mean target indicted terrorists for aprehension and trial for crimes they committed in US jurisdiction? I could go for that. Murder people on unrevealed, let alone proved, allegations? Not such a good idea.
Yes. Checks and balances, our society is founded on them. Governments that operate in secret tend to abuse their power.
We are talking about terrorists abroad, not domestic criminals. And yes, many times the Government track individuals in the United States with out announcing it to the world. There is no reason the Govt should have to give up all their intel because you have an irrational fear of being killed by the Govt. - - - Updated - - - So we should just tell all the terrorist what we are doing because of your irrational fear of Government?
We executed suspected German spies during WWII without " due process." Congress authorized; This authorization has withstood several legal challenges. Given that, I'd say that yes, the Preident is authorized to kill terrorists even if they happen to be US citizens. I'm not saying I agree with the notion, just that it does seem to be legal.
The definition of "terrorist" is far too broad to be used as a basis for killing a US citizen without due process. Besides, US citizens are afforded certain rights via the Constitution, start eroding them for any reason and where do you stop? It's only a fine line from a protester to a terrorist. I find it amazing that liberals were complaining about Bush doing the very things they champion under Obama. Hypocrisy at its finest, stupidity at its most dangerous.
net Did I say I was afraid of being killed by the government? Please link the post where I said that... The only "terrorists abroad" that we should be worried about are ones who have committed or intend to commit crimes here. We don't own the whole planet. There is a system in place to deal with international criminals. Unless a person has been charged with and convicted of a terrorism-related crime in a court of law, we do not know if they are indeed a terrorist.
Don't equate me with liberals. I had no problem with the Patriot Act when Bush passed it nor his objective to catch terrorist seven if I had to give up some of my "freedoms". I just personally do not live by this irrational 1700s fear of the Government. I think they have much bigger problems to worry about than killing random people for no reason. I don't believe at all the Govt needs to tell us what terrorists they are attacking abroad or give any information to us that the terrorists can use for their advantage.
I personally do want to rely on any "international organizations". If we have intel on a terrorist and have the ability to eliminate that terrorist, we should do that. Your irrational fear of the Government should not prevent us from doing what is right.
You had no problem with the patriot act? Hmph, how very cowardly of you. No true American would sacrifice the liberty our servicemen bleed and die for simply for temporary safety, which is mostly an illusion anyway. 9/11 changed nothing. Have fun dreaming of your Marxist government. Real patriots will fight you every step of the way.
No link... no fear expressed. Stop making things up. No wonder you believe all that "war on terror" BS. You're used to living in fantasy land. Your irrational fear of the international criminal system is no reason to go off violating US and international law...
Never said I feared it, just said we shouldn't have to rely on it when we can make our own decisions. If we know of a terrorist participating in terrorist activities and we have a chance to eliminate that terrorist... we should be able to. They have made the choice that they are not to be trusted and we must do anything in our power to destroy them. No, you have the typical libertarian/conservative fear of Government. It's not some secret. You guys are driven by some weird ideology that the Govt is always abusing it's power to kill innocent American's. I don't have that crazy fear... I think the Govt does a great job at protecting this country and should be given some leeway to find and target terrorists domestically and abroad. - - - Updated - - - What rights did I lose? That someone might be monitoring my internet usage or phone calls? Oh wow, I'm glad they get all that useful information!! I'm so scared, I might just go build a bomb shelter and eliminate myself from society because the Govt might be monitoring my phone calls. The only people who should be afraid of the Patriot Act are criminals and terrorists. Law abiding citizens should not have any fear of their Govt targeting them for doing nothing since the Govt has not shown that is what they are doing.
It's fallacious reasoning that only law abiding citizens have anything to fear from government overreach. At their most innocent, govt. officials sometimes screw up. At their most dangerous, they may abuse their power. Either way, public oversight minimizes these risks.
Define "terrorist". And explain how to determine if a particular individual is a terrorist. And how is it the US gov's business to "go after" terrorists that are not operating in or against actual US territory where US law has jurisdiction. Or do you just trust the government to figure all that out for you?
There are things any government should not do, like genocide, slavery, torture, and kill it's citizens. The Government should not be allowed to trump due-process. If we have to win by out terrorizing the terrorist, we are going about it wrong. You end up becoming what your trying to defeat.
In the case of Amerika, since Amerikans have signed off on nullifying the Bill of Rights - the answer to the OP is whenever they want. Amerika no longer has a rule of law that restricts government; only law that restricts and controls the citizens. The Constitution has been turned on its head.
