NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR (House of Representatives - May 16, 2012)

Transcription

1 NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR (House of Representatives - May 16, 2012) Mr. McKEON. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of H.R. 4310, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013, which overwhelmingly passed the Committee on Armed Services. In keeping with the committee's tradition of bipartisanship, Ranking Member Smith and I worked collaboratively to produce this bill and solicited input from each of our members. The legislation advances our national security objectives, provides support and logistical resources for our warfighters, and helps the United States confront the national security challenges of the 21st century. The bill authorizes $554 billion for national defense in the base budget, consistent with the allocation provided by the House Budget Committee. It also authorizes $88.5 billion for overseas contingency operations. The legislation continues my priorities set forth when I was elected chairman. It contains no earmarks. It carefully analyzes the Defense Department for inefficiencies and savings. It helps ensure the Pentagon's new national defense strategy is not a hollow one. And despite historic cuts to our wartime military, it plugs critical capability and strategic shortfalls opened in the President's budget submission. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 achieves these goals by working to: Number one, ensure our troops deployed in Afghanistan and globally, including the National Guard who are the Nation's first line of defense at home, have the equipment, resources, authorities, training, and time they need to successfully complete their missions and return home safely; Number two, care for our warfighters, veterans, and their families with the support they've earned through their service; Three, provide critical strategic capabilities in an era of austerity; Fourth, mandate fiscal responsibility, transparency, and accountability within the Department of Defense; and Finally, improve the relationship between the Defense Department and the supporting industrial base by eliminating red tape and incentivizing competition. 1

2 Mr. Chairman, in 2012 we affirmed that the President is authorized to detain certain al Qaeda terrorists pursuant to the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, or AUMF. Ten years after the horrific attacks of 9/11, it was time for Congress to once again ensure that our men and women in uniform have the authority they need to continue to fight and win the war on terror. Foreign terrorist groups, such as al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, still pose a grave threat to all U.S. citizens. As a result of last year's bill, we've heard from a number of concerned citizens wondering what this affirmation meant in relation to the rights of U.S. citizens. As a result, in this year's bill, we've incorporated Representatives Scott Rigell and Jeff Landry's Right to Habeas Corpus Act, which affirms the availability of the great writ'' habeas corpus to any person detained in the United States pursuant to the AUMF. As we all know, the writ of habeas corpus is the ultimate protection against any unlawful detention by the Executive. I am especially proud of the bipartisan work done on defense industry reform. We have several provisions in our bill that adopt bipartisan recommendations to improve the relationship between the Pentagon and the defense industry. In a time of declining defense budgets, we can no longer afford to conduct business as usual. This bill encourages small businesses to compete for Pentagon contracts and closely scrutinizes every penny that the taxpayers send to the Armed Forces. Finally, in light of the Pentagon's new national security strategy, it's Congress' constitutional obligation to ensure this new force posture is not a hollow one. To that end, we provide modest increases in combat capabilities, with a particular emphasis on our Navy fleet and critical intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance platforms. I thank the chairman and ranking member of the Rules Committee for working with us to bring this measure to the floor. I urge all of my colleagues to support passage of this bill. In partnership with you, we look forward to passing the 51st consecutive National Defense Authorization Act. I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 3 minutes. I want to thank Chairman McKeon, the committee members, and the staff who, once again, did an outstanding bipartisan job in putting together this bill. 2

3 One of the paramount duties of our Congress is to provide for the common defense and, most importantly, make sure that our men and women who serve us in uniform have all the support they need to fulfill the missions that we ask them to do. I believe this bill meets that standard. I thank the chairman for his willingness to work in a bipartisan fashion with me and my staff. I believe we have upheld the tradition of this committee and have shown that Congress can, in fact, work together to get things done, and I always appreciate that opportunity. Most importantly, this bill prioritizes supporting the warfighter. We still have around 70,000 U.S. troops deployed in Afghanistan fighting the war. We need to make sure they have the equipment and support they need to do that. I believe this bill meets that mission. This bill also recognizes the threats we face and adequately funds the need to meet those threats, most importantly, the threat from terrorist and nonstate actors like al Qaeda and their affiliates. We have strong support for the Special Operations Command as well as for intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance to make sure that we can continue to defeat the terrorist networks that would threaten us. Those are the top priorities. We also make sure that our troops get the 1.7 percent pay raise they need and get the support for both the individual troops and for their families that are necessary to continue to serve us. We must always remember that we have an all-volunteer military. We are dependent upon the willingness of people to volunteer. We must make sure that we honor that service. We have done that, and we have done it quite well, to the point where we have the finest military the world has ever seen, and the support from this Congress is critical to maintaining that. While there is much in this bill that I think is excellent and that I support, I will note just one caution as we go forward: Our bill is $8 billion over the Budget Control Act. It is over what the Senate is going to mark up. At some point, we are going to have to rationalize that and figure out how to make our national security strategy and our defense budget work in an era where our budgets are coming down. We have a sizable deficit, and I believe it's critical that we put together a strategic plan and plan for the future. It's not enough to go year by year. We don't want to wake up 2 or 3 years from now and find out that we've funded more programs than we can afford to complete. We need a strategic vision, and we're going to have to work to get to that number and get to that cooperation with the Senate. 3

4 I also want to emphasize the importance of an amendment that I plan to offer that would change how we handle indefinite detention in military custody. I do not believe the executive branch should have that power to indefinitely detain or place in military custody people captured or arrested here in the U.S. I believe the United States Constitution and our due process system provides plenty of protections. We have arrested and convicted over 400 terrorists using that system. We have not used the indefinite detention in military custody power given to the President, and we have been able to protect ourselves. It's important that we protect the Constitution and that amendment is ruled in order, so I would hope that the full House would pass it. I am very pleased with the bill. Again, I thank the chairman for his outstanding work in making sure that this bill supports the men and women in uniform who so bravely serve us. I believe it meets that objective. And I appreciate working with Mr. McKeon, all of his staff, and all of the members of the committee. With that, I reserve the balance of my time. *** THURSDAY May 17, 2012 *** Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time. I support the manager's amendment. I'm going to speak the balance of my time on the Smith-Amash amendment coming up later. There has been a great deal of distorted information going out. I want to take this opportunity to correct some of it. First of all, the Gohmert amendment that's being offered does not solve the problem; you will still be subject to military custody and indefinite detention. It is not clear on that point; it leaves open the possibility the President will maintain that authority, and that is what this debate should be all about. The President, right now, has the authority to go outside of the normal due process, constitutionally protected rights that are part of a court trial, and lock somebody up indefinitely or place them in military custody here in the U.S. That is an extraordinary amount of power to give the executive branch over individual freedom and liberty. I don't think it is necessary to keep us 4

5 safe. Ten years of successfully prosecuting, convicting, and locking up terrorists under Article III courts has proven that point. But hands down, the dumbest set of arguments I've ever heard in debating has been circulating that somehow taking away this extraordinary power from the President rewards terrorists. I would like to remind everybody--and particularly Tea Party conservatives--that just because the government arrests you doesn't mean you're guilty. Under their thinking, basically, once the government says you're a terrorist, you're a terrorist, and we shouldn't have a trial about it. So any effort to make sure that there's a process, to make sure that you actually are a terrorist becomes rewarding them. No; it's the process to make sure they are actually guilty. I cannot believe that Tea Party conservatives want to create a situation where when the government says you're guilty of a crime, that's it--no trial, no process, let's just lock you up and forget about it. That's why we have a court system. Let's have the real debate here. Does the President need this authority to keep us safe? I don't believe he does. Let's stop these ridiculous arguments about rewarding terrorists and have some respect for the Constitution and due process. With that, I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. McKEON. At this point, Mr. Chairman, I yield the balance of our time to the vice chairman of the committee, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Thornberry). Mr. THORNBERRY. I thank the chairman for yielding. Mr. Chairman, we're going to have ample opportunity to debate a number of the issues that the distinguished ranking member raised, but I don't think that we can be here on the floor and allow some of the arguments that have been made to go without some challenge. For example, to say that a letter signed by two former Attorneys General, a former Secretary of Homeland Security, and a variety of other officials who have had positions of responsibility in previous administrations who believe that the Smith-Amash amendment would be detrimental to our effort against terrorists, to say that those arguments are somehow silly or foolish I think really demeans past administrations. It is not actually fitting for this sort of debate. I understand that emotions can run high when we talk about these issues, and there are serious issues to be discussed, some difficult problems and some clear differences. But I 5

6 hope that in the future the nature of the debate is elevated somewhat beyond calling former distinguished officials names. And let me make one other point. One of the key problems that many of us have with the Smith-Amash amendment is that it would bestow upon illegal aliens who come to this country to carry out terrorist attacks, it would bestow upon them full constitutional rights. That means basically, as soon as a member of al Qaeda sets foot on American soil, the first thing he hears after you are under arrest'' is you have the right to remain silent. You have the right to be provided an attorney. And if you can't afford one, an attorney will be provided to you. Now, there may be differences about how we should treat illegal aliens who come here as members of al Qaeda to conduct terrorist attacks. But I think the vast majority of people in this body and around the country do not think telling them they have the right to remain silent, as the first thing they hear, is a wise thing. So as you go through the arguments, and I would encourage Members of the House to read the letter themselves. I would encourage Members of the House to look at today's Wall Street Journal editorial. I would encourage Members of the House to look at the Heritage Foundation entry today on their Web site, to look how significant these issues are, how the Smith- Amash amendment would undermine our ability to defend our people, and how it is unfair to characterize concerns expressed by a dozen or eight to 10 former national security officials as somehow foolish or silly. I think, Mr. Chairman, that we can do better with that. I yield back the balance of my time. *** [Page: H3015] *** AMENDMENT NO. 7 OFFERED BY MR. ROONEY The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 7 printed in House Report Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. 6

7 The text of the amendment is as follows: At the end of title X, add the following new section: SEC. 10. TRIAL OF FOREIGN TERRORISTS. After the date of the enactment of this Act, any foreign national, who-- (1) engages or has engaged in conduct constituting an offense relating to a terrorist attack against persons or property in the United States or against any United States Government property or personnel outside the United States, and (2) is subject to trial for that offense by a military commission under chapter 47A of title 10, United States Code, shall be tried for that offense only by a military commission under that chapter. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 661, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Rooney) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida. Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. My amendment simply codifies in the NDAA that any foreign terrorist detained be tried in a military tribunal set up by this Congress rather than in an Article III court. The reason for that is quite simple. Article III courts, which are reserved for our citizens, afford constitutional rights: the right of an attorney, the right to remain silent, a right to face your accuser and to contradict the evidence that's brought against you, evidence which sometimes is being offered by the government and by people in the intelligence community--information and sources that need to be protected. Military tribunals, I think, are the more adequate venue for foreign terrorist enemy combatants to be tried and to be given due process fairly, which would also protect our sources and would also protect the way that we gather evidence by men and women in uniform and by panels of men and women in uniform. I had the pleasure of serving in the United States Army JAG Corps. They are people of the utmost integrity and the utmost fairness. 7

8 Specifically, despite the fact of our moving further away from 9/11, the war on terror continues, as we have seen with Abdulmutallab, the underwear bomber, as we have seen with Major Nidal Hasan in the Fort Hood shootings, as we have seen with the Times Square bombing, and as we have seen as recently as last week in a second attempt at an underwear-type bombing on an airplane. So, for these reasons and for the reasons stated previously with regard to detainees at Guantanamo Bay, for those who are not U.S. citizens but who are foreign terrorist detainees--and they should get due process--i believe in the due process venue of the military tribunals and military court down in Guantanamo Bay so that they may get their day in court in a fair way, one that is humane and just. With that, Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I rise in opposition to the amendment. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I do not oppose military commissions. I think military commissions are an important tool, particularly when you are talking about people who are captured overseas, potentially in Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia. I agree with the gentleman in that there are instances when the evidence necessary requires a military commission. Yet the problem with this amendment is it says it has to be a military commission, that Article III courts are never an option. We have an extensive history of capturing terrorists overseas, of bringing them back to the United States, of trying them in Article III courts, and of convicting them and putting them in prison. We've done that a number of different times, and it is an option that should be on the table. I cannot support taking that option completely away under any circumstances, because there are a couple of problems with military commissions. They are necessary for many of the reasons that Mr. Rooney stated. However, they are also relatively new. We had some military commissions during World War II--I believe just one for a particular group of German spies who were here in the U.S. We've done a couple since then, but they are untested, and there will undoubtedly be appeals. 8

9 The beauty of the Article III courts is you have 230 years of history. My math may be off a little bit there, but you have over 200 years of history. Let's put it that way. It's well developed, and you know what's coming, and you can prepare the evidence accordingly. We don't know what's going to come from a military commission. The second problem with the military commissions is that our overseas allies are not as fond of them as we are, and it may inhibit our ability to get them to turn terrorists over to us for prosecution if they know they have to go to military commissions. This amendment doesn't make any sense. To take Article III courts completely off the table is taking an option away from the President and from this country to properly protect us. There are going to be instances when we are going to want to use that tool and other instances when we will want to use the military commissions, and this amendment takes away that option in a way that, I believe, will hamper national security. It will limit our options for how to prosecute terrorists. I will say this again, and I will emphasize this: we seem to have totally lost track of the fact that the Department of Justice, the FBI, our Article III courts have been one of the most important tools in successfully stopping the terrorists--over 400 tried, convicted, and locked up for life. That is a very effective tool. The FBI knows how to investigate crimes. It knows how to interrogate suspects. It can do the job. Why would we take that tool in our toolbox and throw it away? It doesn't make sense. For that reason, I have to oppose this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Chairman, I yield 90 seconds to my friend from Arkansas (Mr. Griffin). Mr. GRIFFIN of Arkansas. I stand in support of Mr. Rooney's amendment, which requires all detainees currently held at Guantanamo Bay to be tried by military commissions in the courtroom facility there. It is a strong amendment. I visited Gitmo. It was the first trip that I took when I got to Congress. They had the facilities and the expertise there. I am also currently serving as a JAG officer in the Army--I'm in my 16th year--and I believe that it is the appropriate place to try them. 9

10 Article III courts are not equipped to try foreign terrorists. The constitutional and legal standards for evidence-gathering and prosecution in a civilian case are simply not adequate for the trial of an enemy combatant. These cases often rely on classified evidence, informants, and intelligence operatives. Military commissions, on the other hand, are set up to protect critical intelligence, officials, and evidence while still providing fair and due process for the accused. I would also note that bringing terrorists up to New York City is a very expensive proposition. My constituents have made it clear to me that they want the terrorists kept where they are--at Gitmo--where our state-of-theart facility houses them. We've spent millions of dollars there, including on a large courtroom in which to try detainees. It makes no sense to spend millions more to bring them here for trial when we have the facility and the process to try them at Gitmo. I am confident that trying enemy combatants in military tribunals at Gitmo is the best way to hold terrorists accountable, to keep them out of the United States, and to prevent them from rejoining the fight. Mr. SMITH of Washington. May I inquire as to how much time is remaining? The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman has 2 1/2 minutes remaining. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Andrews). (Mr. ANDREWS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.) Mr. ANDREWS. I rise in opposition to the amendment. If a suspected terrorist can only be tried successfully in a military commission because there are concerns about jeopardizing the confidentiality of classified information or other concerns, then I emphatically agree that that person should be tried in a military commission. But to presuppose that all such detainees properly belong in a military commission, I think, is a mistake, for two reasons. First, it really prejudges the record of evidence and the standing of law in that case when we're not necessarily competent to do that. That is a decision the prosecutors ought to make. Secondly, I think, although it's not the intention of the authors, I'm sure, it belies a certain lack of confidence in our constitutional system of criminal justice. 10

11 We should be proud of our system. It's one that operates on principles of fairness, and it fairly and expeditiously determines guilt or innocence. I think to abandon that system in all cases and under all circumstances not only unwisely prejudges the facts of these cases but also unwittingly undercuts confidence in our Constitution and in our Article III courts. For that reason, I would urge a no'' vote on this amendment. Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Chairman, may I inquire as to the time remaining. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Florida has 1 minute remaining, and the gentleman from Washington has 1 minute remaining. Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chairman, Mr. Rooney has the right to close; is that correct? The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Washington has the right to close. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Then I will reserve the balance of my time. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Florida is recognized for 1 minute. Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Chairman, I would just say to some of the things that have been said that I don't think that what this amendment is saying is in any way disparaging what Article III courts can do or would be successful doing. Certainly I would agree that they could be adequate in prosecuting criminals and people that do crimes in this country. What we are talking about are foreign enemy terrorist combatants, people that commit acts of war against this country in furtherance of the authorization that this Congress passed. What we have done as a Congress is set up military commissions in ways that can protect evidence, ways that can protect witnesses and sources, and, in my opinion, in a way that the Article III courts might not be able to. I'm not saying that they couldn't. I'm saying that it is a better venue. Just like when we talked about earlier the Ranking Member Smith and Amash amendment, which would preclude the use of military tribunals. As much as the ranking member is saying that options should be on the table, we're saying the same thing. With that, I hope my colleagues will vote for this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time. 11

12 Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time. Three quick points. I think the difference here and the reason that I drafted my amendment to say just in the U.S.,'' I think is a legitimate point. Overseas we do not have the same control over the investigatory process that we have here domestically. There's a clear difference between dealing with someone here domestically. That's why in the last 10 years we haven't done anything other than try people here in the U.S. under Article III courts. We haven't needed military commissions. That's why I think we should take that power away from the President because it's an extraordinary amount of power to give him that isn't necessary. Overseas they are, in fact, taking away the options in this amendment and saying it has to be military tribunals. They are also saying that Article III courts are inadequate to do that when, in fact, they've done it repeatedly. The people who committed the bombing against the World Trade Towers in 1993 were captured overseas, brought back, and tried here in domestic courts. Article III courts work sometimes in these incidents. Their amendment takes those options away completely. I also point out that Guantanamo Bay is not an enormous facility. They already have 40 people waiting in line for military tribunals. Many more will backlog that. But I want to come back to my amendment that will come up later. Domestically, we have proven that Article III courts are more than adequate. Overseas, we've proven that we need multiple options. So this amendment sort of is in reverse of what the facts bear out that we should be doing, and I urge opposition to it. I yield back the balance of my time. *** AMENDMENT NO. 45 OFFERED BY MR. GOHMERT The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 45 printed in House Report Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: 12

13 Page 366, line 16, strike HABEAS CORPUS RIGHTS'' and insert RIGHTS UNAFFECTED''. Page 366, line 17, strike Nothing'' and insert (a) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.--Nothing''. Page 366, line 21, insert or to deny any Constitutional rights'' after habeas corpus''. Page 366, line 23, strike person who is detained in the United States'' and insert person who is lawfully in the United States when detained''. Page 366, line 25, insert and who is otherwise entitled to the availability of such writ or such rights'' before the period. Page 366, after line 25, insert the following: (b) NOTIFICATION OF DETENTION OF PERSONS UNDER AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF MILITARY FORCE.--Not later than 48 hours after the date on which a person who is lawfully in the United States is detained pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law ; 50 U.S.C note), the President shall notify Congress of the detention of such person. (c) HABEAS APPLICATIONS.--A person who is lawfully in the United States when detained pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law ; 50 U.S.C note) shall be allowed to file an application for habeas corpus relief in an appropriate district court not later than 30 days after the date on which such person is placed in military custody. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 661, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas. Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Chairman, at this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Rigell). Mr. RIGELL. I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I rise in strong support of the amendment and thank my colleagues--mr. Landry, Mr. Gohmert, and Mr. Goodlatte--for their hard work and their strong leadership on this important issue. I also want to thank the chairman for incorporating the Rigell-Landry bill in the underlying bill, the Right to Habeas Corpus Act. 13

14 The amendment before us this evening provides absolute clarity that every American has full protection under, and access to, the Great Writ of Habeas Corpus. Specifically, it requires that a detained person has the ability to file an application for habeas corpus relief in an appropriate district court no later than 30 days after the date on which the person was placed in military custody. Further, it requires that the administration--current and those to follow--that Congress is notified within 48 hours of a person having been detained under the AUMF in the United States. The 30-day access to habeas corpus and the 48-hour reporting requirement strengthen the underlying bill. They strengthen liberty. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to this amendment. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I yield myself 1 minute and 15 seconds. Three quick points: First of all, habeas has already been guaranteed by the Constitution. There were those who accused last year's defense bill of having stripped habeas, but it didn't, so guaranteeing habeas does nothing to further protect the rights of individuals. That's first of all. Second of all, the bill itself, the way it is worded, which is to say: Nothing shall be construed to deny the availability of the writ of habeas corpus or deny any constitutional rights in a court ordained or established by or under article III of the Constitution for any person who is lawfully in the United States when detained. It has been ruled constitutional to place people in military custody, to hold them indefinitely. This amendment does not eliminate the right to hold people indefinitely or place them in military custody. It does not do what the next amendment--my amendment--actually does, which is protects those rights. Third, I find it interesting that the authors of this amendment think that it does. They think that basically this will protect from indefinite detention and from military custody any person lawfully in the United States. At the same 14

15 time, they are arguing that our amendment that clearly does that for everybody is giving rights to terrorists. What they are doing here, by their own admission--and I disagree with that argument. By their own argument, they are perfectly okay with giving rights to terrorists as long as they're lawfully in the United States. If they are not, that's a big problem. I will expand upon that argument later. I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Chairman, at this time, I would yield 1 minute to my friend from Louisiana, also a cosponsor of this bill, Mr. Landry. Mr. LANDRY. Mr. Chairman, I rise as a proud member of the Tea Party. I opposed the debt ceiling. I opposed some of the CRs. I opposed our involvement in Libya. I'm a strict constructionist when it comes to the Constitution. When I joined this body, I raised my hand to God and swore to uphold the Constitution and protect it from all threats both foreign and domestic. I am a veteran. With this oath, my duty to protect our citizens' liberties is matched by my duty to protect their lives. That is exactly what the text of this bill, when combined with this amendment, does. It ensures that every American has access to our courts and ensures that they will not be indefinitely detained. Equally important, our amendment does not harm our Armed Forces' ability to protect this Nation. Unfortunately, some in this body choose to believe that our soil here is not a battlefield in a war on terror. They want to treat the al Qaeda cell in Seattle differently or better than the al Qaeda cell in Yemen. To yield to these Members to adopt their view does nothing to protect the liberties of our citizens. It only harms their safety. For that reason, I urge them to adopt this amendment. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I would just again point out that he wants to protect the al Qaeda cell here as long as they are lawfully in the U.S. It doesn't make any sense. I yield 1 minute and 45 seconds to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Amash). Mr. AMASH. I have a tremendous amount of respect for my colleagues, Mr. Gohmert and Mr. Landry and Mr. Rigell. I think their amendment is very well 15

16 intentioned, and they care very deeply about this issue. I've had many conversations with them about it. But the first part of the amendment does nothing. It says the AUMF does not deny habeas corpus or any constitutional rights for any person who is detained in the United States who is otherwise entitled to the availability of habeas corpus or such constitutional rights. In other words, if you have constitutional rights, you have constitutional rights. The second part of the amendment might be harmful. It says: Persons detained by the military are allowed to file a habeas petition not later than 30 days after the date on which such person is placed in military custody. First, the Constitution already gives detainees the power to file a habeas at the moment they are detained. At best, the 30-day window does nothing; and at worst, it can be read to allow the government to deny habeas for 29 days or to deny habeas if the petitioner didn't file until after 30 days. So I would like to express my disapproval of the amendment. Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Chairman, at this time, I would like to yield 40 seconds to another cosponsor of this amendment, the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Duncan). Mr. DUNCAN of South Carolina. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate Mr. Amash's efforts to protect liberty. Let us be clear, there should be no ambiguity when the constitutional rights of U.S. citizens are at risk. The fear that Americans have over indefinite detention is well-founded. We have the obligation, and now the opportunity, to be crystal clear in this language, and I believe that this amendment moves this NDAA in the right direction of protecting these cherished constitutional rights. I urge support of this amendment. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chair, how much time do I have left? The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Washington has 2 1/2 minutes remaining. 16

17 Mr. SMITH of Washington. I will yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler). Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, this amendment asserts that it intends to protect the right of habeas corpus, which is to say the right to get into court. But the problem is not habeas. It's not the right to get into court. That is granted by the Constitution. The problem is what you can assert once you get into court. It says nothing about that. It says nothing about the circumstances in which individuals might actually be subject to military detention when arrested within the territory of the United States. It's actually dangerous. It narrows constitutional rights because it narrows the scope of the statutory habeas corpus protection to individuals lawfully in the United States when detained as opposed to those detained in the United States. Someone with questionable immigration status might not have any habeas rights under this amendment. Secondly, as Mr. Amash pointed out, by saying that you can file it not later than 30 days, it could be read to say that, unlike current law where you can file habeas the moment you're detained, you have to wait 30 days, or you might not be able to file after 30 days. So it's an affirmatively dangerous amendment. It narrows the right to habeas corpus, and it doesn't do anything to protect the real problem here, which is not habeas. That was never the problem. The real problem is the right of detention, when you get into court through habeas and the court says, You have no rights, because indefinite detention is permitted. That's the problem we ought to be dealing with. This amendment doesn't deal with it, and it makes the habeas arguably more difficult and more narrow. If we value due process and if we value liberty, this amendment should be defeated. Mr. GOHMERT. At this time, I reserve the balance of my time. I do have the right to close; is that correct? The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Washington has the right to close. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I will yield myself the balance of our time. 17

18 The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 1 minute. Mr. SMITH of Washington. This amendment is pure and simply a smokescreen. The proponents of this amendment believe that the President of the United States should have the power to indefinitely detain people in the U.S. They believe that these people should be placed in military custody. I wish we could have that debate, and we will to some extent on the next amendment. This was offered as a smokescreen to give people who want to claim that civil liberties are their top priority someplace to hide. It doesn't protect any rights whatsoever. It was pure and simply offered as a smokescreen. Let's have the debate on the next amendment about whether or not the President of the United States should have this extraordinary amount of power to indefinitely detain or place in military custody or military tribunals people captured or detained within the United States. I, as I will explain in the next amendment, don't believe that that extraordinary amount of power is necessary to keep us safe. I think it is an amazing amount of power to give a President over the individual freedom, to give the government the power to take away someone's individual freedom without the due process rights that have been developed in our Constitution and our court system. This amendment doesn't change that. Vote it down. Let's have a real debate on the next amendment. Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Chair, the issue here is, do you want to fix the possible problems with the Authorization for Use of Military Force back in 2001 when all of the cosponsors were not even here and possibly the NDAA? Or do you want to extend new rights that are not constitutionally required? Because those of us that have sponsored this amendment want to fix the possible problem of inappropriate detention. That's why this amendment was offered. I take a particular affront because I do not question the motivation of the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Smith). I know the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Amash). We've stood alone on too many bills together. I know their intent is good. This is not a smokescreen. This is intended to fix a problem. In the underlying bill that came before the floor, it has a fix for habeas corpus in paragraph A. I added the provision that gets us to where we were before the AUMF. That's what I wanted to fix, not as a smokescreen. But what this does is say, if you had these constitutional rights before the AUMF, you've still got 18

19 them now. And nothing in the AUMF, nothing in the former NDAA, nothing in the new NDAA can change that. You have those rights. I understand we don't have CARE supporting this amendment as they do the following proposed amendment. But listen, what this would do if the subsequent amendment wins instead of this one, you are giving rights to people illegally in this country, for example, to people who are foreign terrorists, who sneak their way in here and kill people, rights that immigrants who are undocumented don't have. People say, Gee, we have a right to an article III court. This Congress has the right to never create an article III court. No one in America has the right to an article III court. This Congress has a right under article I, section 8 to create or not create inferior courts. I'm glad we created them. I would say we should if we didn't. But the right is to go back to where we were before the AUMF. That's what this amendment does, and we appreciate the support of Heritage and The Wall Street Journal in saying that the subsequent amendment is not the way to go, extending additional rights. Let's fix the problem, and this amendment does that. I yield back the balance of my time. The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert). The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes appeared to have it. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas will be postponed. AMENDMENT NO. 46 OFFERED BY MR. SMITH OF WASHINGTON The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 46 printed in House Report Mr. SMITH of Washington. I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. 19

20 The text of the amendment is as follows: At the end of subtitle D of title X, add the following new section: SEC DISPOSITION OF COVERED PERSONS DETAINED IN THE UNITED STATES PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF MILITARY FORCE. (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the Due Process and Military Detention Amendments Act''. (b) Disposition.--Section 1021 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 is amended-- (1) in subsection (c), by striking The disposition'' and inserting Except as provided in subsection (g), the disposition''; and (2) by adding at the end the following new subsections: (g) Disposition of Persons Detained in the United States.-- (1) PERSONS DETAINED PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF MILITARY FORCE OR THE FISCAL YEAR 2012 OR 2013 NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACTS.--In the case of a covered person who is detained in the United States, or a territory or possession of the United States, pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force, this Act, or the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013, disposition under the law of war shall occur immediately upon the person coming into custody of the Federal Government and shall only mean the immediate transfer of the person for trial and proceedings by a court established under Article III of the Constitution of the United States or by an appropriate State court. Such trial and proceedings shall have all the due process as provided for under the Constitution of the United States. (2) PROHIBITION ON TRANSFER TO MILITARY CUSTODY.--No person detained, captured, or arrested in the United States, or a territory or possession of the United States, may be transferred to the custody of the Armed Forces for detention under the Authorization for Use of Military Force, this Act, or the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year (h) Rule of Construction.--This section shall not be construed to authorize the detention of a person within the United States, or a territory or possession of the United States, under the Authorization for Use of Military 20

21 Force, this Act, or the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013.'' (c) Repeal of Requirement for Military Custody.-- (1) REPEAL.--Section 1022 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 is hereby repealed. (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.--Section 1029(b) of such Act is amended by striking applies to'' and all that follows through any other person'' and inserting applies to any person''. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 661, the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Smith) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Washington. Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Chair, I yield myself 1 minute. First of all, the previous amendment doesn't say anything about pre As the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Amash) correctly stated, it says, If you have constitutional rights, you have them. It doesn't say anything about restoring them prior to It doesn't address the issue, and I apologize. I do not question Mr. Gohmert's motives. I suspect that's what he wanted to do. That's not what his amendment does. If you want to protect the rights of people in this country, then you need to support this amendment, the Smith amendment. And this is a very important debate. Back in 2001, we passed the authorization for the use of military force. Post- 9/11, it made sense, I think, to be careful, to give the President the power he needed to protect us. But what we've learned in the last 10 years is one power that he does not need is the power to indefinitely detain or place in military custody people here in the United States. Our justice system works. The Department of Justice works. The FBI works. They have arrested, convicted, and locked up over 400 terrorists and have gotten all kinds of actionable intelligence out of them. The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I will yield myself an additional 15 seconds. 21

22 This is an extraordinary amount of power to give to the President, to give the government the power to take away an individual's rights and lock them up with nothing more than one quick court hearing, without the due process rights protection in our Constitution. It's not needed. This is our opportunity to repeal it. I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. THORNBERRY. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Texas is recognized for 5 minutes. Mr. THORNBERRY. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Landry). Mr. LANDRY. Mr. Chairman, this amendment turns the global fight on terror into a CSI investigation. On its face, the supporters will say exactly, but let's see the results. The mission of those who fight the war on terror, now it's how do we prevent acts of terror from inflicting billions of dollars of damages to save lives? You see, our law enforcement and prosecutorial system in this country is, by nature, an after-the-fact determination, meaning, we rarely have the ability to arrest a potential murderer until after he commits the crime. The deterrent is the length of the sentence for the murder that deters people from trying to harm or kill another. That's not the case in terrorism. We set the punishment level to the severity of the crime. But the level under terrorism, there's no known level. What deters a person from flying a plane into a building? So how does passing this amendment protect the furtherance of that crime or would we simply be satisfied with investigating after the fact? Mr. SMITH of Washington. I would point out that our Justice Department has arrested countless terrorists before they act by discovering their plots and stopping them. That is what they're designed to do, and it's what they've done quite effectively. I yield 1 1/2 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Amash). Mr. AMASH. Mr. Chair, the frightening thing here is that the government is claiming the power under the Afghanistan Authorization for Use of Military Force as a justification for entering American homes to grab people, 22

23 indefinitely detain them, and not give them a charge in a trial. That's the frightening thing. That's the thing that the Smith-Amash amendment fixes. It's the only amendment that does it. I sometimes hear this strange argument that the Constitution applies only to citizens, not persons. If you read the Fifth and 14th Amendments, it applies to persons. Those are the amendments that provide for due process. James Madison said the Constitution applies to persons. And logic dictates that the Constitution applies to persons. It applies to noncitizens. Is the government allowed to make noncitizens worship a State religion? Is the government allowed to take noncitizens' property without compensation? Can the government quarter troops in noncitizens' homes? Can the government conduct unreasonable searches and seizures on noncitizens' homes? Of course not. That's ridiculous. Everybody here understands that's ridiculous. No one disputes that all persons in the U.S. are covered by the Constitution. HASC claims to protect persons. The House Armed Services Committee in the NDAA claims to protect persons with respect to habeas. The Gohmert amendment claims to protect persons, not citizens. And the Smith-Amash amendment protects persons. It's a phony argument. The Smith-Amash amendment is the only amendment that will protect citizens. The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I yield the gentleman an additional 15 seconds. Mr. AMASH. We have a very clear choice here. A Federal court has ruled section 1021 in the NDAA unconstitutional. There is one amendment that fixes it. Will you do it? And if you don't, how will you explain it to your constituents? Mr. THORNBERRY. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. West), a distinguished member of the committee. Mr. WEST. I rise in opposition to this amendment. I find it very interesting that back in 1942, when there were German Nazi saboteurs that were captured off the coast of Long Island, that they were prosecuted in a military commission. One of them was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment; others were sentenced to death. And I understand that this is 23

24 a different type of battlefield that we're on, the 21st century battlefield. We're all on this battlefield. No one would have ever thought that Major Malik Nadal Hasan would stand in Fort Hood, Texas, and shoot 43 Americans and 13 of those would be killed. I find that we have to understand that we are at a war. We are not in a police action. We cannot look to guarantee to those who seek to harm us the constitutional rights that are granted to Americans. If we extend that to them, then we are starting to say that this war on terror, now it's a criminal action. And I find it very interesting that a sponsor of this amendment is the Council for American Islamic Relations, which is an unindicted coconspirator for the largest terrorist financing act here. So I say we should not support this amendment. Mr. SMITH of Washington. I point out that only Members of Congress are allowed to sponsor amendments. Nobody outside of that has sponsored this. I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler). Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, last year I argued in opposition to sections 1021 and 1022 of the NDAA, that they went far beyond the AUMF to suggest that the President has the authority to detain U.S. citizens indefinitely without charge. This amendment prohibits the detention without charge of any person arrested or detained in the United States and is the first step toward restoring due process. It's a good first step, but its scope is limited to U.S. soil and to the present AUMF. We should do more. That's why I've introduced the No Detention Without Charge Act, which would not only prohibit detention without charge of people arrested in the United States, but would also prohibit the detention of any person anywhere indefinitely, except to the extent permitted by the Constitution and the law of war, and it would restore meaningful right of action for detainees to challenge the legality of their detention. The notion that the United States should conduct itself according to the Constitution and the law of war should not be controversial. Smith-Amash takes the first step--and I have proposed the next--towards affirming our values and securing our liberty. If we are going to address indefinite detention, we must do so directly. 24