Opinion: A wrong turn in fight on terrorism
Publisher’s note: This editorial is from the Dec. 16, 2011, Los Angeles Times.
The White House said this week that President Obama will sign a controversial $662-billion defense authorization that permits indefinite detention without trial for some terrorism suspects and broadens the authorization for the use of force against people and groups “associated” with Al Qaeda anywhere in the world. It’s the wrong choice.
The bill, which passed the House Wednesday and the Senate Thursday, is being advertised as a compromise with the administration, and indeed it includes provisions designed to avoid a veto. But several are vague or confusing. For example, although it requires that foreign suspected Al Qaeda terrorists be placed in military custody, it seems to allow FBI agents to interrogate them. On Wednesday, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III said that the compromise left “uncertainty as to who has the role and who’s going to do what.”