Karen Greenberg is the director of the Fordham Law School National Security Center.
I recall my concerns about the Patriot Act in the terrible days after 9/11. I know that the Supreme Court did stand firm for same basic constitutional guarantees but they blurred in my memory that is not what it once was.
With journalistic detail, Greenberg reminds us that the courts were faced with basic habeus corpus protections under real threat. At the same time lower federal courts relaxed standards amid the uncertainty of the law in facing terror as opposed to a nation state. I would have liked a bit more detail on some of the major Supreme Court decisions, but she strikes the major notes of the rulings.
I recall my concerns about the Patriot Act in the terrible days after 9/11. I know that the Supreme Court did stand firm for same basic constitutional guarantees but they blurred in my memory that is not what it once was.
With journalistic detail, Greenberg reminds us that the courts were faced with basic habeus corpus protections under real threat. At the same time lower federal courts relaxed standards amid the uncertainty of the law in facing terror as opposed to a nation state. I would have liked a bit more detail on some of the major Supreme Court decisions, but she strikes the major notes of the rulings.
She spends a good deal of time on the legal justification for the anti-terrorist memos out of the White House. It is particularly strong on the early days where lawyers seemed as concerned about extending presidential powers as they were giving careful guidance on balancing national security and constitutional rights. This included John Yoo’s memos justifying what must be called torture and seeking to provide legal immunity for practicing it. Still, a number of officials in the Bush administration did try to curb excesses and struggle to restrain some of the broader claims made for executive power in the face of the threats of terrorism.
Greenberg reminds us how far afield President Obama went in his action, as opposed to his words during his campaigns and even as Chief Executive. The administration did not prosecute those who tortured. The administration sent a drone strike against an American citizen for publicly supporting terrorist ideology on an attractive web site.
Greenberg reminds us how far afield President Obama went in his action, as opposed to his words during his campaigns and even as Chief Executive. The administration did not prosecute those who tortured. The administration sent a drone strike against an American citizen for publicly supporting terrorist ideology on an attractive web site.
This book provides the virtue of perspective and time so we can assess more accurately the shape of civil liberties after 9/11.
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