| Homeland Security & War On Terror Issues |
* Barack Obama - D
 |
Ralph Nader - I
 |
Chuck Baldwin - CON
 |
| Homeland Security, a General Statement |
Obama: Since the end of the Cold War, threats from distant corners of the world increasingly pose a direct danger to America. Killing fields in Rwanda, Congo and Darfur have offended our common humanity and set back the world's sense of collective security. Weak and failing states from Africa to central Asia to the Pacific Rim are incubators of resentment and anarchy that can endanger those countries and ours. An assertive Russia and a rising China remind us -- through words and deeds -- that the primacy of our power does not mean our power will go unchallenged. At the dawn of the 21st century, the threats we face can no longer be contained by borders and boundaries.
That is the lesson of 9/11. We will never forget the 3,000 Americans killed on 9/11 -- more than we lost at Pearl Harbor. The threat came from stateless terrorists. These violent extremists are a small minority in the Muslim world. They distort Islam. They hate America. They kill man, woman and child. And they seek a repressive caliphate that would resemble Afghanistan under the Taliban.
Our brave young men and women have signed up to make these burdens their own. They have come face to face with the threats of the 21st century, and they have been asked to bear an evolving and ever-increasing load. Peacekeeping missions. Intelligence gathering. Training foreign militaries. Earthquake and tsunami relief. Fighting with Afghan allies to topple the Taliban. The U.S. military has answered when called, and the verdict on their performance is clear: through their commitment, their courage, and their capability they have done us all proud.
What we need is civilian leadership that lives up this service. And my judgment -- based in part on the clear findings of the National Intelligence Estimate -- is that the most direct terrorist threat to our homeland comes from al Qaeda operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Source: www.barackobama.com/2007/08/21/obama_vows_to_keep_sacred_trus.php Date: 08/21/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Making Our Homeland More Secure |
Obama: As commander-in-chief, all of us would have a responsibility to keep the American people safe. That's our first responsibility. I would not hesitate to strike against anybody who would do Americans or American interests' harm. What I do believe is that we have to describe a new foreign policy that says, for example, I will meet not just with our friends, but with our enemies, because I remember what Kennedy said, that we should never negotiate out of fear, but we should never fear to negotiate. Having that kind of posture is the way we effectively debate the Republicans on this issue. Because if we just play into the same fear-mongering that they have been engaged in since 9/11, then we are playing on their battlefield, but, more importantly, we are not doing what's right in order to rebuild our alliances, repair our relationships around the world, and actually make us more safe in the long term.
Source: 2008 Congressional Black Caucus Democratic debate Date: 01/21/2008 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| National Security Agency (NSA) Examinining Domestic Phone Records |
Obama: Obama supports updating surveillance laws and ensuring that law enforcement investigations and intelligence-gathering relating to U.S. citizens are done only under the rule of law.
Source: www.barackobama.com Date: 12/08/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: The Nader campaign urges Congressional hearings on post 9-11 rules and procedures enacted by the Bush Administration in order to examine their impact on security and civil liberties.
Source: Candidate Website Date: 10/04/2008 |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Radical Fundamentalism |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Weapons of Mass Destruction |
Obama: The greatest threat our nation faces is a nuclear weapon falling into terrorists' hands. The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed 650 cases of illicit trafficking in nuclear and radiological materials worldwide between 1993 and 2004. As little as four kilograms of plutonium - about the size of a soda can - can potentially be enough for a fissile nuclear bomb. Senator Obama passed legislation with Senator Lugar to prevent weapons of mass destruction from being smuggled across the globe. Signed into law in January 2007, the Lugar-Obama initiative will help other nations detect and secure weapons of mass destruction before they ever leave their borders. Senator Obama also worked with Senator Lugar to successfully restore $8 million in budget cuts to the original Nunn-Lugar Initiative.
Source: www.barackobama.com Date: 12/07/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Bioterrorism |
Obama: Additional steps should also be taken to consolidate and secure dangerous pathogen collections, strengthen bio-reconnaissance networks to provide early warning of bio-attack and natural disease outbreaks, and have our experts work together to develop improved medical countermeasures. As the Avian Influenza outbreak demonstrates, even the zealous Russian border guard is helpless against the global sweep of biological threats.
Source: www.barackobama.com Date: 12/07/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Department of Homeland Security (DHS) |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| National Guard in the Department of Homeland Security vs. Defense |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Intelligence |
Obama: We should strengthen and improve intelligence capabilities. We must reform our domestic intelligence capabilities in a manner that balances the risks of impeding on the civil liberties of our citizens and increase international cooperation on all fronts. We should also give the Director of Intelligence the authority he or she needs over budget and personnel to be effective and accountable.
Source: Press Release, "Renewal of American Leadership Date: 07/12/2004 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Domestic Intelligence Agencies |
Obama: Along with strengthening our military, we must strengthen our intelligence capabilities. In recent years, through international cooperation, our government has had some success in tracking the terrorists’ financial resources, arresting important terrorist leaders and, thus, making our people more secure. We should be thankful for that.
But, to succeed in the war on terror, we must have extraordinary international cooperation on all fronts, while reforming our domestic intelligence capabilities in a manner that balances the risks of impeding on the civil liberties of our citizens. We must make sure that our intelligence sharing capabilities are improved across agencies and between federal and local law enforcement. We must provide the needed resources to our first responders to ensure their access to critical information at the critical times.
And we must give the Director of Intelligence the authority he or she needs over budget and personnel to be effective and accountable. I recognize that this is not an easy political move – there will remain turf battles within the Executive Branch and Congress. Such reforms will require a determined effort by the President, the congressional leadership, and members of the Senate, and I will be supportive of such efforts.
Source: Candidate Website Date: 10/04/2008 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| NSA Surveillance of Citizens |
Obama: The Supreme Court has never held that the president has such powers. As president, I will follow existing law, and when it comes to U.S. citizens and residents, I will only authorize surveillance for national security purposes consistent with FISA and other federal statutes.
Source: Boston Globe questionnaire on Executive Power Date: 12/20/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Color-Coded Warning System |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Local First Responders |
Obama: It is a noble calling what you do [as firefighters]. You know that. I know that. This country knows that. But sometimes Washington forgets. They praise your work. But when it's time for you to get health care or buy the radios and equipment you need, those supporters disappear like a puff of smoke. Instead of making your job easier, they tried to cut funding so that you couldn't buy the masks and suits you need. They wanted to stop the hiring of 75,000 new firefighters. They wanted to hide the US Fire Administration under layers of bureaucracy at Homeland Security. And 5 years after September 11th, they still won't give our first responders the health care they earned that day. What keeps Washington from doing all that it needs to do to better protect our firefighters, police officers, and EMT's--it's not a lack of ideas and solutions that's holding us back. It is the smallness of our politics.
Source: 2007 IAFF Presidential Forum in Washington DC Date: 03/14/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Air Security |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Port Security |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Rail Security |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Hazardous Materials Security |
Obama: Chemical plants are attractive terrorist targets because they are often located near cities, are relatively easy to attack, and contain multi-ton quantities of hazardous chemicals. While a number of plants have taken voluntary steps to improve security, there are still major gaps; and the federal government has never established meaningful, permanent security regulations. Senator Obama worked with Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) to introduce comprehensive chemical plant security legislation that would establish a clear set of federal regulations that all plants must follow. The bill requires chemical facilities to enhance security, including improving barriers, containment, mitigation, and safety training, and, where possible, using safer technology, such as less toxic chemicals.
Source: www.barackobama.com Date: 12/08/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Cybersecurity |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Spent Nuclear Fuel |
Obama: The nation has 103 operating nuclear power plants which annually produce over 2,000 metric tons of spent fuel that remains highly radioactive for many years. A report by the Government Accountability Office found inadequate tracking and security for spent nuclear fuel rods. Nuclear plants in Connecticut, Vermont and California have reported missing spent fuel in the last five years. Senator Obama introduced legislation to establish guidelines for tracking, controlling, and accounting for spent fuel at nuclear power plants.
Source: www.barackobama.com Date: 12/08/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Drinking Water Security |
Obama: There are almost 170,000 public water systems in the United States. An attack on a drinking water system could contaminate or disrupt water service, thereby disrupting society, impacting human health and compromising critical activities such as fire protection. Senator Obama introduced legislation to provide $37.5 million over 5 years for drinking water systems to upgrade their monitoring and security efforts.
Source: www.barackobama.com Date: 12/08/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Evacuation Preparedness |
Obama: One of the most devastating aspects of Hurricane Katrina is that most of the stranded victims were society's most vulnerable members - low-income families, the elderly, the homeless, and disabled Americans. Too many states and cities do not have adequate plans in place to care for special-needs populations. Senator Obama introduced and passed legislation to require mandatory planning for evacuating people with special needs.
Source: www.barackobama.com Date: 12/08/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| War on Terror, a General Statement |
Obama: I don't believe that we are safer now than we were after 9/11 because we have made a series of terrible decisions in our foreign policy. We went into Iraq, a war that we should have never authorized and should not have been waged. It has fanned the flames of anti-American sentiment. It has, more importantly, allowed us to neglect the situation in Afghanistan. We know right now that al Qaeda is hiding in the hills between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Source: 2007 AFL-CIO Democratic primary forum Date: 08/08/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| War on Terrorism Policies |
Obama: One reason to stop fighting the wrong war is so that we can fight the right war against terrorism and extremism. And my judgment -- based in part on the clear findings of the National Intelligence Estimate -- is that the most direct terrorist threat to our homeland comes from al Qaeda operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
That's why earlier this month, I laid out a comprehensive counter-terrorism strategy. That plan has five elements. First, we need to end the war in Iraq and focus on the terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and I would re-enforce our mission in Afghanistan with at least two brigades. Second, we need to develop our capabilities to take down terrorist networks and secure nuclear weapons. Third, we need to dry up support for extremism, because we cannot win the long war unless we win more hearts and minds in the Muslim world. Fourth, we need to restore our values, because as the counter-insurgency manual reminds us, torture sets back our mission to keep the people on our side. And fifth, we need to protect our homeland by setting common sense priorities.
In laying out this strategy, I am guided by the understanding that there is no more awesome responsibility that is placed in a President's hand than protecting our country and our security. I believe that this strategy is one that we must pursue, guided by the principle that we must act swiftly and strongly against clear and imminent threats to our security. I will act with proper regard for the costs and consequences of action, based on the advice of military commanders and with a clear statement of purpose and policy to the American people. Because a President can choose to go to war, but the country must be prepared to sustain it. That depends upon knowing why we are fighting, what clear goal we are fighting for, and how we plan to win the peace.
Source: www.barackobama.com/2007/08/21/obama_vows_to_keep_sacred_trus.php Date: 08/21/2007 |
Nader: No, our current policies have made us less safe and less free.
Source: Candidate Website Date: 10/04/2008 |
Baldwin: No Response |
| National Intelligence Estimate Assessment |
Obama: [The US should] strengthen and improve intelligence capabilities. We must reform our domestic intelligence capabilities in a manner that balances the risks of impeding on the civil liberties of our citizens and increase international cooperation on all fronts. We should also give the Director of Intelligence the authority he or she needs over budget and personnel to be effective and accountable.
Source: Press Release, "Renewal of American Leadership " Date: 07/12/2004 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Al-Qaeda |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Guantanamo Bay Prison (GITMO) |
Obama: Why don't we close Guantanamo and restore the right of habeas corpus, because that's how we lead, not with the might of our military, but the power of our ideals and the power of our values. It's time to show the world we're not a country that ships prisoners in the dead of night to be tortured in far off countries. We're not a country that runs prisons which locks people away without ever telling them why they're there or what they're charged with. We're not a country which preaches compassion to others while we allow bodies to float down the streets of major American cities. That's not who we are.
We're America. We're a nation that liberated a continent from a mad man, that lifted ourselves from the depths of depression, that won civil rights and women's rights and voting rights for all our people. We're the beacon that has led generations of weary travelers to find opportunity and liberty and hope on our doorstep. That's who we are.
Source: Take Back America 2007 Conference Date: 06/19/2007 |
Nader: Mr. Nader calls for an end to secret detentions, arrests without charges, no access to attorneys and the use of secret “evidence,” military tribunals for civilians, non-combatant status and the shredding of “probable cause” determinations.
Source: Candidate Website Date: 10/04/2008 |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Terrorist Prisoner Rights Under Geneva Conventions |
Obama: No Response |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Torture of Terrorists |
Obama: The secret authorization of brutal interrogations is an outrageous betrayal of our core values, and a grave danger to our security. We must do whatever it takes to track down and capture or kill terrorists, but torture is not a part of the answer - it is a fundamental part of the problem with this administration's approach. Torture is how you create enemies, not how you defeat them. Torture is how you get bad information, not good intelligence. Torture is how you set back America's standing in the world, not how you strengthen it. It's time to tell the world that America rejects torture without exception or equivocation. It's time to stop telling the American people one thing in public while doing something else in the shadows. No more secret authorization of methods like simulated drowning. When I am president America will once again be the country that stands up to these deplorable tactics. When I am president we won't work in secret to avoid honoring our laws and Constitution, we will be straight with the American people and true to our values
Source: www.barackobama.com/2007/10/04/obama_torture_and_secrecy_betr.php Date: 10/04/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Waterboarding |
Obama: The secret authorization of brutal interrogations is an outrageous betrayal of our core values, and a grave danger to our security. We must do whatever it takes to track down and capture or kill terrorists, but torture is not a part of the answer - it is a fundamental part of the problem with this administration's approach. Torture is how you create enemies, not how you defeat them. Torture is how you get bad information, not good intelligence. Torture is how you set back America's standing in the world, not how you strengthen it. It's time to tell the world that America rejects torture without exception or equivocation. It's time to stop telling the American people one thing in public while doing something else in the shadows. No more secret authorization of methods like simulated drowning. When I am president America will once again be the country that stands up to these deplorable tactics. When I am president we won't work in secret to avoid honoring our laws and Constitution, we will be straight with the American people and true to our values.
Source: "Obama: Torture and Secrecy Betray Core American Values," Press Release Date: 10/04/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Trials of Terrorist and Combantant Detainees |
Obama: I reject the view that the President may do whatever he deems necessary to protect national security, and that he may torture people in defiance of congressional enactments. I reject the use of signing statements to make extreme and implausible claims of presidential authority. Some further points:
The detention of American citizens, without access to counsel, fair procedure, or pursuant to judicial authorization, as enemy combatants is unconstitutional.
Warrantless surveillance of American citizens, in defiance of FISA, is unlawful and unconstitutional.
The violation of international treaties that have been ratified by the Senate, specifically the Geneva Conventions, was illegal (as the Supreme Court held) and a bad idea.
The creation of military commissions, without congressional authorization, was unlawful (as the Supreme Court held) and a bad idea.
Source: Boston Globe questionnaire on Executive Power Date: 12/20/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Habeas Corpus and Legal Rights for Combatant Detainees |
Obama: If you were a Muslim overseas listening to Rudy Giuliani say "they are coming here to try to kill you," which is the tenor of many of the speeches that are delivered by Republicans, you would get an impression that they are not interested in talking and resolving issues peacefully. Now, what we need to do [to reach Muslims] is we need to close Guantanamo. We need to restore habeas corpus. We need to send a strong signal that we are going to talk directly to not just our friends but also to our enemies.
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic debate Date: 12/13/2008 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Enemy Combatants |
Obama: I reject the Bush Administration's claim that the President has plenary authority under the Constitution to detain U.S. citizens without charges as unlawful enemy combatants.
Source: Boston Globe questionnaire on Executive Power Date: 12/20/2007 |
Nader: No Response |
Baldwin: No Response |
| Homeland Security & War On Terror Issues |
Bob Barr - L
 |
John Mccain - R
 |
| Homeland Security, a General Statement |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: The sacrifices borne in our defense are not shared equally by all Americans. But all Americans must share a resolve to see this war through to a just end. We must not be complacent at successes, AND we must not despair over setbacks. We must learn from our mistakes, improve on our successes, and vanquish this unpardonable enemy. If we do less, we will fail the one mission no American generation has ever failed-to provide to our children a stronger, better country than the one we were blessed to inherit
Source: 2004 Republican Convention Speech Date: 08/30/2004 |
| Making Our Homeland More Secure |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: The global war on terrorism, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, threats from rogue states like Iran and North Korea, and the rise of potential strategic competitors like China and Russia mean that America requires a larger and more capable military to protect our country's vital interests and deter challenges to our security. America confronts a range of serious security challenges: Protecting our homeland in an age of global terrorism and Islamist extremism; working with friends and partners overseas, from Africa to Southeast Asia, to help them combat terrorism and violent insurgencies in their own countries; defending against missile and nuclear attack; maintaining the credibility of our defense commitments to our allies; and waging difficult counterinsurgency campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Source: www.johnmccain.com Date: 12/05/2007 |
| National Security Agency (NSA) Examinining Domestic Phone Records |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: In the aftermath of 9/11 John McCain fought for the creation of an independent 9/11 Commission to identify how to best address the terrorist threat and decrease our domestic vulnerability.
Source: www.johnmccain.com Date: 12/05/2007 |
| Radical Fundamentalism |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: A major concern that conservatives have is the threat of radical Islamic extremism, and I'm best-qualified to keep the nation safe.
Source: http://www.newsweek.com/id/107586 Date: 02/12/2008 |
| Weapons of Mass Destruction |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: Voted YES on banning chemical weapons.
Source: Bill S. Res. 75 ; vote number 1997-51 Date: 04/24/1997 |
| Bioterrorism |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Department of Homeland Security (DHS) |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: He fought for the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security and the creation of the U.S. Northern Command with the specific responsibility of protecting the U.S. homeland.
Source: www.johnmccain.com Date: 12/05/2007 |
| National Guard in the Department of Homeland Security vs. Defense |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Intelligence |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: The attacks on September 11th represented more than a failure of intelligence. The tragedy highlighted a failure of national policy to respond to the development of a global terror network hostile to the American people and our values. The 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the 1998 attacks on the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, and the 2000 bombing of the USS COLE indicated a growing global terrorist threat before the attacks on New York and Washington. On the morning of September 11, 2001, Osama bin Laden's declaration of war against the United States hit home with unmistakable clarity.
Source: www.johnmccain.com Date: 12/05/2007 |
| Domestic Intelligence Agencies |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| NSA Surveillance of Citizens |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: He will ensure that the war against terrorists is fought intelligently, with patience and resolve, using all instruments of national power. Moreover, he will lead this fight with the understanding that to impinge on the rights of our own citizens or restrict the freedoms for which our nation stands would be to give terrorists the victory they seek.
Source: www.johnmccain.com Date: 12/05/2007 |
| Color-Coded Warning System |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Local First Responders |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: Voted NO on restoring $565M for states' and ports' first responders.
Source: Bill S AMDT 220 to S Con Res 18 ; vote number 2005-64 Date: 04/17/2005 |
| Air Security |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: McCain sponsored the Aviation Security Act
Establishes the Transportation Security Administration, including:
civil aviation security, and related research and development activities;
day-to-day Federal security screening operations for passenger air transportation and intrastate air transportation;
policies, strategies, and plans for dealing with threats to transportation;
domestic transportation during a national emergency, including aviation, rail, and other surface transportation
management of security information, including notifying airport or airline security officers of the identity of individuals known to pose a risk of air piracy or terrorism or a threat to airline or passenger safety.
H.R. 2951 is the corresponding House bill. Became Public Law No: 107-71.
Source: Bill sponsored by 31 Senators and 25 Reps 01-S1447 Date: 09/21/2001 |
| Port Security |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Rail Security |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Hazardous Materials Security |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Cybersecurity |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Spent Nuclear Fuel |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Drinking Water Security |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Evacuation Preparedness |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| War on Terror, a General Statement |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: If efforts in Iraq do not retain the support of the American people, the war will be lost as soundly as if our forces were defeated in battle. A renewed effort at home starts with explaining precisely what is at stake in this war to ensure that Americans fully understand the high cost of a military defeat. The war in Iraq is at a crossroads and the future of the entire region is at stake - a region that produced the terrorists who attacked America on 9/11 and where much of the world's energy supplies are located. Success is essential to creating peace in the region, and failure would expose the United States to national security threats for generations. Defeat in the war would lead to much more violence in Iraq, greatly embolden Iran, undermine U.S. allies such as Israel, likely lead to wider conflict, result in a terrorist safe haven in the heart of the Middle East, and gravely damage U.S. credibility throughout the world.
Source: www.johnmccain.com Date: 12/05/2007 |
| War on Terrorism Policies |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: I've spent my life in national security issues. I've taken unpopular stance because I knew what was right. Back in 2003, amid criticism from my fellow Republicans, I spoke strongly against the Rumsfeld strategy, which I knew was doomed to failure and cause so much needless sacrifice. I advocated very strongly the new strategy that some Democrats have called the McCain strategy--which it is not. And I believe that this strategy is winning. I know the conflict. I know war. I have seen war. I know how the military works. I know how the government works. I understand national security. I was once the commanding officer of the largest squadron in the US Navy. I didn't manage it. I led it.
Source: 2007 GOP debate at UNH, sponsored by Fox News Date: 09/05/2007 |
| National Intelligence Estimate Assessment |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Al-Qaeda |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: Well, we're going to recruit, and send people in who can blend into the culture, into the tribal communities. I didn't say it was going to be easy. But I will get him. And why is it so important? One, he killed 3,000 Americans. But two, he is recruiting & instructing radical Islamic extremists who want to destroy everything we stand for. This guy is a continuing threat.
Source: Meet the Press: 2008 "Meet the Candidates" series Date: 01/06/2008 |
| Guantanamo Bay Prison (GITMO) |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: I would immediately close Guantanamo Bay, move all the prisoners to Fort Leavenworth [Kansas] and truly expedite the judicial proceedings in their cases.
Source: Telegraph.co.uk Date: 03/19/2007 |
| Terrorist Prisoner Rights Under Geneva Conventions |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: No Response |
| Torture of Terrorists |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: Any information that we may gain through the use of torture can never, ever be counterbalanced by the damage it does to America's reputation and the risk that when an American is in the hands of an enemy, that they will use the fact that we tortured people as an excuse to torture our brave men and women in the military.
Source: www.nytimes.com/2007/09/05/us/politics/06text.html Date: 09/05/2007 |
| Waterboarding |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: I am astonished that you would think such a torture [waterboarding] would be inflicting on anyone we have held captive and anyone could believe that's not torture, it's in violation of the Geneva Conventions...let me tell you, if we're going to get the highground in this world, and we are going to be the America we have cherished and loved for over 200 years, we're not going to torture people.
Source: www.mcclatchydc.com/244/story/22932.html Date: 12/10/2007 |
| Trials of Terrorist and Combantant Detainees |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: Voted NO on requiring CIA reports on detainees & interrogation methods. Amendment to provide for congressional oversight of certain Central Intelligence Agency programs. The underlying bill S. 3930 authorizes trial by military commission for violations of the law of war. The amendment requires quarterly reports describing all CIA detention facilities; the name of each detainee; their suspected activities; & each interrogation technique authorized for use and guidelines on the use of each such technique.
Source: Rockefeller Amendment; Bill S.AMDT.5095 to S.3930 ; vote number 2006-256 Date: 09/28/2006 |
| Habeas Corpus and Legal Rights for Combatant Detainees |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: Voted NO on preserving habeas corpus for Guantanamo detainees.
Source: Bill S.AMDT.5087 to S.3930 ; vote number 2006-255 Date: 09/28/2006 |
| Enemy Combatants |
Barr: No Response |
Mccain: The Supreme Court ruled in 2004 that, under the Congressional authorization of the use of force, the US can hold even American citizens under the law of war if they are enemy combatants. But the Court also said that US citizens must have due process to challenge their detention. And I think that is very important when it comes to American citizens.
Source: Boston Globe questionnaire on Executive Power Date: 12/20/2007 |