CNN reports:
“Our government’s current executive order to halt the military commissions makes us foolish and weak, and invites more attacks,” said Melissa Long, whose boyfriend was a first responder killed in New York. “What is fair and just is to continue the military commissions and punish those who have committed acts of terrorism against Americans, period.” Long later married a man who lost his parents when their plane slammed into the Pentagon on that fateful day. Brian Long acknowledged that some of the detainees may have gone through some inhumane treatment through the years, but he thinks they are being well taken care of now. “The only injustice is being orchestrated by our leader by making decisions about something he knew nothing about,” Long said.
Reuters reports:
The family members, brought to the U.S. military base in Cuba by the Pentagon, saw three of the five men accused of plotting the 2001 hijacked airliner attacks face the court set up by former President George W. Bush to try suspects in his war on terrorism. But they did not see the alleged mastermind, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who boycotted the session. The relatives toured the U.S. Navy base but were not allowed into the detention camps. They met with guards and praised their work, as well as the operation of the first U.S. war crimes tribunals since World War II. Critics call the Guantanamo detention camps a stain on America’s human rights reputation and the tribunals a miscarriage of justice.
“I have nothing to gain other than to tell you people, we need this camp. We absolutely need this camp,” said Gary Reiss of Yardley, Pennsylvania, whose son Joshua, a 23-year-old bond trader for Cantor Fitzgerald, died in the World Trade Center.
The Washington Times reports:
Judith Reiss, who lost her son, Joshua, in the World Trade Center collapse, said that she was a “Mama for Obama” during the campaign last year. “I have the right to say, ‘Mr. President, you’re making a mistake. You’re wrong,’ ” she said as her husband, Gary, stood at her side, wiping away tears.
The AP reports:
Diane Fairben of Floral Park, New York, whose paramedic son, Keith, died at the World Trade Center, noted the presence of more than a dozen lawyers, a mix of active duty military and civilians, to assist the five defendants even though three are serving as their own attorneys and the other two have asked the court for clearance to do the same. “These people are being afforded the best legal representation and they are getting a fair shake,” Fairben told reporters. “I ask the president to give us a fair shake. We’ve been shunted to the side for too long and it’s getting to be a bit much.”
Update, 1:00 PM EDT: Michelle Malkin reports Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) has a petition opposing Guantanamo detainees being moved to the United States and is sponsoring an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2010 which would prohibit their transfer to the U.S.
oh by the way i lived in beautiful clermont and its a shame that the bin ladens ever lived in clermont. and yes i did read the book : Bin Ladens where it tells us that the bin ladens had a strong presence in the central florida area. too bad the bin ladens are strongly connected to prez bush who supposedly arranged for this nasty families hasty exit from our shores as they have had a long and lucrative relationship with the saudi family through the oil industry and before that bushs grandpa was an arms dealer to the Nazis in WWI. its a lie bush would never kill one of his own. the bin ladens are too closely connected to the fortune of the bushes.
first of all a very deepest belated condolences to all the 911 vitims and their family and friends. i see that there was a mama for obama group? haha…..well i hope all the white liberal moms and other groups who voted for obamski will not make the same mistake twice wen he is up for election in 2012. first of ll i am not happy that the clintons pardoned the weather underground members before their departure from office in 2000 but i am also even more angry at the fact that we have a president who is even more closely associated with the terror group the weather underground. you see the weather underground committed more than 30 odd bank robberies starting in 1969 and culminatig in their last arrest in 1985 for a carload of bombs and bullets in Brooklyn NY which they intended to use to attack fort Dix. my cousin was one of those brinks guards who was cut down by bill ayers and bernutine dorhn, donald weems and kathy boudin. only bernutine dorhn, kathy boudin and donold weems aka kuwasi balagoon were tried and convicted for their participation in my cousins murder which occurred on june 2nd 1981 in Inwood NY in which his partner was shot and permanently disabled and 293,000 dollars was stolen out of the Brinks armored car. bernutine dorhn got the least time. only 7 months. this gave her plenty of tie off to arange other fake ids for her buddies at the WUO and planning other robberies and murders. didnt the mama for obama group take Jhn Mccain at his word when he said that obama is very very closely associated with terrorist/murderer types likie bill ayers and his wife? isnt it scary to them that a candidate for the usa presidency is palling around with ex-cons like bernutine dorhn? didnt they know that there is no statutory limit in a murder case and that bernutine dorhn should be retried for murder in a whole list of robberies and bombings one of which took the life of a police sargeant in cali? oh yeah the list goes on and on. mr holden the new AG who was recently appointed by Obama is highly unlikely to reopen old murder cases especially where there is a possibility that is old friends and mentor/surrogate dad and momm Bill air and his nasty wife could face murder and bombing charges. there was a news conference called in march of this year calling for the AG to do just that. and lets make it clear the weather underground was totally guilty of Bombings murders robberies etc and obama was not 8 years old at the time, and he actually met the airs and dorhn in manhattan in june of 1981 when he started college and actually joined the student branch of the weather underground at Columbia(the SDS)
Last night I went to a viewing of the ACLU’s movie “The Response,” a re-enactment of a military commission at GTMO. This was in Orlando, Florida. I had a chance to speak to a constitutional attorney beforehand and I sent him the following email this morning. I speak for myself here and am engaged to a 9-11 family member It was shocking to learn that this first amendment attorney had no idea that 9-11 families were involved in the Dod and DoJ GTMO process…or did he?
Derek….
I enjoyed talking with you last night at the ACLU showing of The Response. I was a little taken aback at your lack of knowledge that the Dod is talking to 9-11 families regarding their positions on the release of GTMO detainees. Perhaps you did know, but didn’t want to discuss it.Google it…many sources are available online. Either way, Derek, this is not a secret, Below my message is a copy of a Miami Herald reporter’s request for 9-11 family members who have BEEN or who are GOING to GTMO to respond to named reporter for a story on this very subject.
I also included a link from a 9-11 family group that featured a recent AP story on the “6th high value detainee” – al Qhatani – that I discussed with you last night…the alleged 20th hijacker who failed to connect with Mohammad Atta at the ORLANDO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT and because of an astute security guard, was forced to leave the airport. He went to Afghanistan where he was apprehened and brought back to GTMO. His name is literally struck from the list of Dod high value detainees due to a decision rendered by judge Susan Crawford who determined his testimony was gathered under duress and was not admissable…not even in military commission court. Read about Crawford’s decision here: “Detainee Tortured, Says U.S. Official Trial Overseer Cites ‘Abusive’ Methods Against 9/11 Suspect” By Bob Woodward, Washington Post Staff Writer, Wednesday, January 14, 2009; A01, Retrieved July 18, 2009 from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/13/AR2009011303372_pf.html.
Unfortunately, as you know, many of the hijackers lived in Florida for a time before 9-11, but what you may not know is that Mohammad Atta (”den mother” of the hijackers while they lived in the states prior to 9-11) also lived here in your own backyard, Derek… in Winter Garden where the bin Laden’s had built an apartment complex. It’s on record also. Members of the bin Laden family lived in various places in the U.S. and they had a home here. They were airlifted quietly out of the U.S. just days after 9-11 by the Bush administration…this, too, is common knowledge and in fact was reported in the Sentinel… Yeslam bin Laden’s wife, Carmen bin Laden, lived in Clermont and wrote a book about her life in Saudi with the bin Laden’s, but the book mainly discussed her life and treatment of women. However, my point is this…as you said last night, “What to do?”
Military commission (tribunal) or open Federal Court? Do we take high value detainees who may or may not have been tortured, but have absolutely been linked to 9-11 and allow them to be heard in open court, enjoying constitutional rights? If so, evidence that has been gathered for EIGHT YEARS by not only the military, but by other U.S. intelligence agencies and foreign agencies could be thrown out of federal court because, as you know, military court and federal court proceedings are vastly different. If we “switch horses in midstream” and Obama takes this to federal court, then the evidence and rights process BEGINS ALL OVER AGAIN. The high value detainees could walk on technicalities…
I agree that where there are “grey areas” in levels of detainees, that some type of oversight should be in place. But since Bush saw fit to muscle his way into this mess, I suppose it is now left up to the lawyers to sort out the Administration’s “legal black hole.”
My vote goes this way….high value detainees known to be at ANY WAY CONNECTED TO 9-11 should be heard in military court under tribunal laws. Low level detainees….well… And Mr. al Qhatani? Absolutely put him BACK on the list. THERE is enough evidence that he would have been the 20th hijacker if he had make it through OIA and actually met up with Atta. ALL SIX OF THESE DETAINEES SHOULD BE GIVEN A MILITARY TRIAL AND APPROPRIATE SENTENCES. September 11, 2001 is not a matter that should be raised in the same discussion as “what to do with the GTMO high values that WERE CONNECTED TO THE BOMBINGS.”
However, in no way should torture have been sanctioned nor should it continue. You can thank the Bush Administration for that decision. And it is only fair that now, Cheney, Bush and other high ranking members of the administration should now have their in court, no? A fair and balanced trial of course…with constitutional rights and due process of law. There is enough evidence against all to convict all..without the use of torture.
Please note…the families of 9-11 are currently demanding to re-open the 9-11 Commission under the Obama administration. Connect here to learn more: http://nyccan.org/ The first commission was a poor attempt to justify why the Bush administration and others before his ignored clear cut “evidence” that 9-11 was inevitable. Family members, the citizens of the United States and the international community – of which 92 nations lost lives on 9-11 – have a right to know the spongeable “truth”. NO?
Derek…the families of 9-11 could sure use a good constitutional, first amendment rights lawyer such as yourself. I wonder if you arent’ on the wrong side of justice this time? Rights of detainees? What about the RIGHTS OF 9-11 FAMILIES and their right to simple truth. I also told you last night that there are many issues, many, that have been side-stepped, covered up, blacked out and otherwise ignored in – MY OPINION – an attempt to rewrite history on 9-11. I know conspiracy when I see it and believe me, Derek, there are many issues surrounding 9-11 that are still unresolved and that cause these family members on-going pain. All they ask for is what YOU could give them…their constitutional right to simply hear the truth about the murder of their loved ones.
Thanks for letting me present you with another viewpoint.
Regards…Cherie Faircloth
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