Habeas Corpus

Senators Christopher Dodd, Patrick Leahy, and Arlen Specter are sponsoring a bill to restore habeas corpus, which was so brutally withdrawn from American jurisprudence in last year's Military Commissions Act. Well, that might be a bit strong, but the bill did say that the Prez could waive habeas corpus, and thus hold people without charging them with a crime, at his leisure. This was a travesty when it passed, but what's truly unconscionable is the fact that the current effort is getting so little notice. Looking for a good link about the bill, I did a Google News search for habeas corpus and barely got a handful of hits about this bill. But you can find some basic information from Chris Dodd at Taylor Marsh's Website, background from Steve Benen at The Carpetbagger Report, and a list of senators on the fence from Christy at firedoglake. The New York Times and The Washington Post both weigh in in favor. But Lindsey Graham apparently doesn't think this time-hallowed doctrine should potentially bind the government's hands, so he's organizing a filibuster. Christy is reporting that the cloture vote is due in 10:30 eastern on Wednesday morning. It's not clear whether there are 60 votes yet in support of habeas corpus, so call your senator to make sure they're on board. If you want to know how close to 60 votes they are at any given time, there's a vote counter here. As I go to bed, there's still some way to go to get a veto-proof majority.