"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary." ~ H.L. Mencken
Moderation in Following the Constitution is No Virtue
"Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee and a victim of torture in the Vietnam War, is considered a moderate on issues relating to “war on terror” detainees. This time he has paired with a moderate Democrat, Carl Levin, chairman of that same committee, to insert in the 2012 defense authorization bill a provision requiring military detention only for al-Qaeda members who are suspected of planning or perpetrating attacks against the United States. The bill even allows the executive branch wide latitude in determining who fits into this category, provides it a waiver to hold such detainees in civilian custody if it serves the national security, explicitly authorizes the transfer of military prisoners to civilian custody for trial in federal courts, and makes it easier for the president to transfer prisoners from Guantanamo to the United States or foreign countries. In a bout of bipartisanship, the Senate Armed Services Committee approved these measures unanimously."
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