Secret Panel Can Order Americans Assassinated

[Agorism]

Secret Panel Can Order Americans Assassinated

http://news.antiwar.com/2011/10/05/white-house-secret-panel-can-order-americans-assassinated/



In comments made through the media today, a number of top Obama Administration officials, including White House spokesman Tommy Vietor, confirmed that there is a “secret panel” which exists now that can order American citizens assassinated with no judicial oversight.

Vietor declined to give any information related to the process of how the panel decides who lives and who dies, but officials say as far as they know cleric Anwar Awlaki was the only American they have ordered executed yet.

The only thing officials would say about the assassination process was that the president’s death panel was a “subset” of the National Security Council and that there is no existing legislation governing its operation.

The notion of a supreme panel of life and death which operates outside of the law is making a number of Americans uneasy, and has raised concerns that the president could move beyond religious leaders to target members of the media critical of his policies. As with the many other policies of the Obama Administration it does not appear likely to change anything.

[KramerDSP]

Unreal.

[moostraks]

insane!!! and to think according to article it is "making a number of americans uneasy"...it should be worthy of more of a reaction than unease!!!!!

[Cutlerzzz]

It's ok guys. I'm pretty sure that there is an article in the Constitution that says "The President may establish a Panel that can assassinate anyone they choose, for whatever reason they choose, anywhere around the world they choose, without the authority of the President, the Congress, or of the States."

[The Bavarian]

I feel a lot safer now.

[Tarzan]

Wow!!! Sarah Palin was right.
Here's your Death Panel.
:rolleyes:

[devil21]

Another article here. Very disturbing.

http://news.yahoo.com/secret-panel-put-americans-kill-list-041603267.html


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - American militants like Anwar al-Awlaki are placed on a kill or capture list by a secretive panel of senior government officials, which then informs the president of its decisions, according to officials.

There is no public record of the operations or decisions of the panel, which is a subset of the White House's National Security Council, several current and former officials said. Neither is there any law establishing its existence or setting out the rules by which it is supposed to operate.

The panel was behind the decision to add Awlaki, a U.S.-born militant preacher with alleged al Qaeda connections, to the target list. He was killed by a CIA drone strike in Yemen late last month.

The role of the president in ordering or ratifying a decision to target a citizen is fuzzy. White House spokesman Tommy Vietor declined to discuss anything about the process.

Current and former officials said that to the best of their knowledge, Awlaki, who the White House said was a key figure in al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, al Qaeda's Yemen-based affiliate, had been the only American put on a government list targeting people for capture or death due to their alleged involvement with militants.

The White House is portraying the killing of Awlaki as a demonstration of President Barack Obama's toughness toward militants who threaten the United States. But the process that led to Awlaki's killing has drawn fierce criticism from both the political left and right.

In an ironic turn, Obama, who ran for president denouncing predecessor George W. Bush's expansive use of executive power in his "war on terrorism," is being attacked in some quarters for using similar tactics. They include secret legal justifications and undisclosed intelligence assessments.

Liberals criticized the drone attack on an American citizen as extra-judicial murder.

Conservatives criticized Obama for refusing to release a Justice Department legal opinion that reportedly justified killing Awlaki. They accuse Obama of hypocrisy, noting his administration insisted on publishing Bush-era administration legal memos justifying the use of interrogation techniques many equate with torture, but refused to make public its rationale for killing a citizen without due process.

Some details about how the administration went about targeting Awlaki emerged on Tuesday when the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Representative Dutch Ruppersberger, was asked by reporters about the killing.

The process involves "going through the National Security Council, then it eventually goes to the president, but the National Security Council does the investigation, they have lawyers, they review, they look at the situation, you have input from the military, and also, we make sure that we follow international law," Ruppersberger said.

LAWYERS CONSULTED

Other officials said the role of the president in the process was murkier than what Ruppersberger described.

They said targeting recommendations are drawn up by a committee of mid-level National Security Council and agency officials. Their recommendations are then sent to the panel of NSC "principals," meaning Cabinet secretaries and intelligence unit chiefs, for approval. The panel of principals could have different memberships when considering different operational issues, they said.

The officials insisted on anonymity to discuss sensitive information.

They confirmed that lawyers, including those in the Justice Department, were consulted before Awlaki's name was added to the target list.

Two principal legal theories were advanced, an official said: first, that the actions were permitted by Congress when it authorized the use of military forces against militants in the wake of the attacks of September 11, 2001; and they are permitted under international law if a country is defending itself.

Several officials said that when Awlaki became the first American put on the target list, Obama was not required personally to approve the targeting of a person. But one official said Obama would be notified of the principals' decision. If he objected, the decision would be nullified, the official said.

A former official said one of the reasons for making senior officials principally responsible for nominating Americans for the target list was to "protect" the president.

Officials confirmed that a second American, Samir Khan, was killed in the drone attack that killed Awlaki. Khan had served as editor of Inspire, a glossy English-language magazine used by AQAP as a propaganda and recruitment vehicle.

But rather than being specifically targeted by drone operators, Khan was in the wrong place at the wrong time, officials said. Ruppersberger appeared to confirm that, saying Khan's death was "collateral," meaning he was not an intentional target of the drone strike.

When the name of a foreign, rather than American, militant is added to targeting lists, the decision is made within the intelligence community and normally does not require approval by high-level NSC officials.

'FROM INSPIRATIONAL TO OPERATIONAL'

Officials said Awlaki, whose fierce sermons were widely circulated on English-language militant websites, was targeted because Washington accumulated information his role in AQAP had gone "from inspirational to operational." That meant that instead of just propagandizing in favor of al Qaeda objectives, Awlaki allegedly began to participate directly in plots against American targets.

"Let me underscore, Awlaki is no mere messenger but someone integrally involved in lethal terrorist activities," Daniel Benjamin, top counterterrorism official at the State Department, warned last spring.

The Obama administration has not made public an accounting of the classified evidence that Awlaki was operationally involved in planning terrorist attacks.

But officials acknowledged that some of the intelligence purporting to show Awlaki's hands-on role in plotting attacks was patchy.

For instance, one plot in which authorities have said Awlaki was involved Nigerian-born Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, accused of trying to blow up a Detroit-bound U.S. airliner on Christmas Day 2009 with a bomb hidden in his underpants.

There is no doubt Abdulmutallab was an admirer or follower of Awlaki, since he admitted that to U.S. investigators. When he appeared in a Detroit courtroom earlier this week for the start of his trial on bomb-plot charges, he proclaimed, "Anwar is alive."

But at the time the White House was considering putting Awlaki on the U.S. target list, intelligence connecting Awlaki specifically to Abdulmutallab and his alleged bomb plot was partial. Officials said at the time the United States had voice intercepts involving a phone known to have been used by Awlaki and someone who they believed, but were not positive, was Abdulmutallab.

Awlaki was also implicated in a case in which a British Airways employee was imprisoned for plotting to blow up a U.S.-bound plane. E-mails retrieved by authorities from the employee's computer showed what an investigator described as " operational contact" between Britain and Yemen.

Authorities believe the contacts were mainly between the U.K.-based suspect and his brother. But there was a strong suspicion Awlaki was at the brother's side when the messages were dispatched. British media reported that in one message, the person on the Yemeni end supposedly said, "Our highest priority is the US ... With the people you have, is it possible to get a package or a person with a package on board a flight heading to the US?"

U.S. officials contrast intelligence suggesting Awlaki's involvement in specific plots with the activities of Adam Gadahn, an American citizen who became a principal English-language propagandist for the core al Qaeda network formerly led by Osama bin Laden.

While Gadahn appeared in angry videos calling for attacks on the United States, officials said he had not been specifically targeted for capture or killing by U.S. forces because he was regarded as a loudmouth not directly involved in plotting attacks.

[phill4paul]

When the government abrogates its purpose of protecting the liberty and rights of it's citizens it is time for revolution. When a secretive panel can decide who the government may kill without due process the final line has been crossed. The legislative branch has adopted the tactic of every tyrannical government in history. The tactic of targeting for MURDER any individual whom they wish to.

[Krugerrand]

It's ok guys. I'm pretty sure that there is an article in the Constitution that says "The President may establish a Panel that can assassinate anyone they choose, for whatever reason they choose, anywhere around the world they choose, without the authority of the President, the Congress, or of the States."

That was part of the secret Patriot Ammendment.

[Created4]

This is getting very interesting, now that the "left" is supposedly becoming outraged over this. This story (from Reuters) is at the top of MSNBC.com this morning (right next to Steve Jobs), just days after they tried to make Ron Paul look like a lunatic by his comments over this assassination. The mass media is looking more and more foolish all the time in the way they cover Ron Paul's comments and try to marginalize him. Definitely getting interesting....

[donnay]

I believe the John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007 gives the go ahead to assassinate, along with the Patriot Act Sect. 802 Defined under "Domestic terrorism." Both were signed into law by George W. Bush. The left were screaming about it back in 2006/2007, but, because their man is in office now they are silent. Please someone--anyone, tell me where they can find any difference in either party? From where I sit, I cannot see any difference. :mad:



http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/cpquery/T?&report=sr335&dbname=110&

John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007

"Public Law 109-364, or the "John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007" (H.R.5122) (2), which was signed by the commander in chief on October 17th, 2006, in a private Oval Office ceremony, allows the President to declare a "public emergency" and station troops anywhere in America and take control of state-based National Guard units without the consent of the governor or local authorities, in order to "suppress public disorder."

"Section 1076 of the massive Authorization Act, which grants the Pentagon another $500-plus-billion for its ill-advised adventures, is entitled, "Use of the Armed Forces in Major Public Emergencies." Section 333, "Major public emergencies; interference with State and Federal law" states that "the President may employ the armed forces, including the National Guard in Federal service, to restore public order and enforce the laws of the United States when, as a result of a natural disaster, epidemic, or other serious public health emergency, terrorist attack or incident, or other condition in any State or possession of the United States, the President determines that domestic violence has occurred to such an extent that the constituted authorities of the State or possession are incapable of ("refuse" or "fail" in) maintaining public order, "in order to suppress, in any State, any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy."

[CaptainAmerica]

the SS gestapo of the 3rd Reich also had that power.

[HOLLYWOOD]

I wonder how the GOP presidential field of establishment hacks and tea party phonies feel about the Patriot Act now?

The Central powers of the government can override any state, it's national guard/militias.governors/people and do as they wish?

This is Nazi Germany 1930's... and this is all under the false flag of protecting the people, but truly it's protecting racketeering government and complete control over all.

When the dust clears and you see who's responsible for acts and tyranny like this, they are, as usual, long gone. Senator John Warner and accomplices should never be forgotten for their destruction to freedom, liberty, and sticking the people with the costs too.

[ctiger2]

I propose instead of assassinating the us citizens, they capture them and put them into a nationally televised death game where they fight some kind of gladiator type being. And when they become mortally wounded everyone watching will glance up to the Kings press box and he'll give the sign:

http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/EXID5738/images/ObamaMaineAlexBrandon.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4eJmXKTpr1E/TaZO6F6L1vI/AAAAAAAAB3U/eQcLcSnDHa0/s320/king-obama.jpg

/s

[Krugerrand]

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4eJmXKTpr1E/TaZO6F6L1vI/AAAAAAAAB3U/eQcLcSnDHa0/s320/king-obama.jpg

/s

I like!

Can we get this crown changed to a burger king crown?

[Tarzan]

I propose instead of assassinating the us citizens, they capture them and put them into a nationally televised death game where they fight some kind of gladiator type being.

Make it Pay per View and balance the budget at the same time. :)
I like it!

[Agorism]

bump

[AuH20]

I wonder how the GOP presidential field of establishment hacks and tea party phonies feel about the Patriot Act now?

The Central power of the government can overrife any state, it's national guard/militias.governors/people and do as they wish?

This is Nazi Germany 1930's... and this is all under the false flag of protecting the people, but truly is protecting government and complete control.

When the dust clears and you see who's responsible for acts and tyranny like this, they are, as usual, long gone. Senator John Warner and accomplices should never be forgotten for their destruction to freedom, liberty, and sticking the people with the costs too.

I can't completely kill them on that. There are secret provisions of the Patriot Act not accessible to the public or even some politicians. The government has been out of control for some time but you know that already.

[josh b]

Wow, there's blatant tyranny in our midst. This is unreal and I almost can't believe it's really happening.

[Agorism]

What does that safety pin looking thing mean when I see this thread?

[Pericles]

Can I order the assassination of the secret panel?

[Dr.3D]

Just wait till they decide it's okay to assassinate certain groups of people.

[Anti Federalist]

It's ok guys. I'm pretty sure that there is an article in the Constitution that says "The President may establish a Panel that can assassinate anyone they choose, for whatever reason they choose, anywhere around the world they choose, without the authority of the President, the Congress, or of the States."

Reading....reading...reading...nope, nothing so far.

It must be there somewhere though.

[Krugerrand]

What does that safety pin looking thing mean when I see this thread?

It's a paperclip indicating that there is a post with an attachment in the thread. You can access the attachments or the post by clicking on the paperclip icon.

[Tarzan]

Can I order the assassination of the secret panel?

No... Duh! They are a SECRET panel and you don't know who they are. :)

To make sure you got the entire panel you would have to round up all the politicians and lawyers in Washington and get them all at once.
Hmmm... hey, wait a minute! ;)

[Philhelm]

Reading....reading...reading...nope, nothing so far.

It must be there somewhere though.

The Tenth Amendment. Only the States or the People reserve the right to assassinate American citizens.

[Pericles]

The Tenth Amendment. Only the States or the People reserve the right to assassinate American citizens.

There ^ is the answer.

[Tarzan]

Reading....reading...reading...nope, nothing so far.
It must be there somewhere though.

Article II Section One... its right there in the Presidential Oath:
"I will faithfully execute"

The Obama Administration needs to start referring to this as the "Execute Clause"... what the heck, we already have them talking about the "welfare clause" the "commerce clause" and other "clauses" that do not exist. May as well include this one as well. :)

[amy31416]

Article II Section One... its right there in the Presidential Oath:
"I will faithfully execute"


Thank you! I knew it was in there somewhere. !!

[moderate libertarian]

Is the panel "secret" due to Obama's masters' anti-transperancy initiatives or out of fear?

Why hide if what they are doing is just and fair.