Detainee Court Access Amendment Voted Down

In a narrow victory, more notable for the fact that Republican defections outnumbered Democratic, the Senate voted down the Specter-Leahy amendment that would have allowed detainees the right to challenge their incarceration in court.

The Senate today narrowly rejected a measure that would have allowed suspected terrorists to challenge their detention in federal court, as the body moved closer to passing a White House-backed bill to authorize special military tribunals for detainees held at Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere.

In a key vote on an amendment sponsored by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the Senate voted 51 to 48 against deleting from the bill a provision that rules out habeas corpus petitions for foreigners held in the war on terrorism. The writ of habeas corpus, which is enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, allows people to challenge in court the legality of their detention, essentially meaning that they cannot be held indefinitely without charge or trial.

In the vote on the Specter-Leahy amendment, 43 Democrats and one independent were joined by four Republicans in the unsuccessful effort to include the provision. Fifty Republicans and one Democrat voted against the amendment, and one Republican did not cast a vote.

The four Republican senators voting for the measure were Lincoln D. Chafee of Rhode Island, Gordon H. Smith of Oregon, John E. Sununu of New Hampshire and Specter. Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska was the lone Democrat to vote against it. Not voting was Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R-Me.).

This bill is an abomination. This amendment, while only a bit of lace and silk piled on Frankenstein's monster, was at least a baby step in the right direction. Every Senator who voted for this has abrogated his duties to 'protect and defend' and forfeited his right to BE a Senator. Find out if your Senator voted against the amendment and vote him, if you have to wait another four years for the opportunity. This is treason.