Acts of Tyranny by the Last Two U.S. Presidents
The Constitutional principle of habeas corpus protects against unlawful and indefinite imprisonment. The United States Constitution specifies that, "the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended unless, when in cases of rebellion or invasion, the pubic safety may require it."
The Insurrection Act of 1807 is an exception to the Posse Commitatus statute, which forbids the use of military assets in domestic law enforcement, except as allowed by the Constitution or an act of Congress. The original Insurrection Act required the President to seek approval from state legislatures or governors before deploying soldiers, except in cases where: a localized breakdown of authority has made the enforcement of federal laws “impracticable”; or any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy “hinders the execution of the laws of that State … that any part or class of its people is deprived of a right, privilege, immunity, or protection named in the Constitution and secured by law.”
On October 17, 2006, there were two acts of tyranny committed:
1. The first was a public signing by President George W. Bush of the Military Commissions Act of 2006, which suspended habeas corpus. This Act will allow the President to declare you an 'enemy combatant,' ending your rights to seek legal or judicial relief from unlawful imprisonment.
2. The second act of tyranny took place in a private Oval Office ceremony in which the President signed into law the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2007, which essentially eliminates the protections of the Posse Comitatus Act and which re-wrote the Insurrection Act, a federal law which allows the President to deploy federal troops within the United States in the event that state authorities are unable to maintain the rule of law within their own borders. The NDAA will allow the President to declare a 'public emergency' and take control of state-based National Guard units, without the consent of the governor or local authorities, in order to 'suppress public disorder.'
