The Right of Habeas Corpus and the War on Terror

1321 WordsJun 18, 20186 Pages
The Right of Habeas Corpus and the War on Terror Introduction September 11, 2001 changed the United States forever. This disastrous attack on the Pentagon and the twin towers at the World Trade Center destroyed the lives of thousands of people. Over 3,000 people were killed, including hundreds or firefighters and policemen, many of which were never found. The attackers were Islamic terrorists from Arab nations. The war on terror declared by the Bush Administration, had become one of the most important issues in the United States during that time and still is today. However, it did not always protect those that needed to be protected. There was the detention of potential suspects who were held without the right to habeas corpus. There…show more content…
S. Constitution. The habeas corpus has only been officially suspended twice since its inception. In 1861, President Abraham Lincoln suspended the habeas corpus in Maryland and some Midwestern states due to riots and threats that Maryland would secede from the Union. The second suspension of habeas corpus took place in the early 1870’s when President Ulysses S. Grand responded to civil rights violations by the Ku Klux Klan (The Rutherford Institute). Since the September 11th terrorists attacks, President Bush attempted several times to revoke the writ of habeas corpus. An example would be denying the detainees of Guantanamo Bay habeas corpus by granting him the power to be able to revoke habeas corpus for all citizens. By passing the Military Commissions Act of 2006, habeas corpus was eliminated by allowing non-citizen enemy combatants to be held indefinitely in a military prison without access to a lawyer (The Rutherford Institute). Since that time the denial of habeas corpus has been challenged. Habeas Corpus and the War on Terror After the terrorist’s attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, the Bush administration launched the war on terror. The terms “illegal combatant” and enemy combatant” became popular during this campaign. Bush wanted to let the world know that if you are not with the United States then it was assumed you were on the side of the terrorists. The Administration’s policies and methods were questioned the Patriot Act was
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