The National Defense Authorization Act for 2012 isn’t all that sinister

There are a lot of rumors floating about on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year 2012 which was signed by President Obama in December of 2011. Most of what folks are posting about on social media sites is just pure craziness. The bill is neither secret nor subversive nor part of some conspiracy to take away your rights. It doesn't allow the government to throw you into jail with no charges being filed. It does not allow for indefinite detention of American citizens, with no contact with families for any reason the government deems appropriate. The law is quite clear and for the most part relates to people related to terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces.

I will be giving more details as I go along here but wish to explain a few things first. As much as I despise our current President, this law wasn't written by him. It was passed by Congress like all laws are. It is NOT an executive order. It is part of the standard Military Appropriations bill passed each year by Congress. The section is question is the presumably evil Sec 1021. Below I have a quote of the most pertinent sections of the law.

SEC. 1021. <<NOTE: 10 USC 801 note.>> AFFIRMATION OF AUTHORITY OF
THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES TO
DETAIN COVERED PERSONS PURSUANT TO THE
AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF MILITARY FORCE.

(a) In General.–Congress affirms that the authority of the
President to use all necessary and appropriate force pursuant to the
Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40; 50 U.S.C.
1541 note) includes the authority for the Armed Forces of the United
States to detain covered persons (as defined in subsection (b)) pending
disposition under the law of war.
(b) Covered Persons.–A covered person under this section is any
person as follows:
(1) A person who planned, authorized, committed, or aided
the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or
harbored those responsible for those attacks.
(2) A person who was a part of or substantially supported
al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces that are engaged in
hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners,
including any person who has committed a belligerent act or has
directly supported such hostilities in aid of such enemy forces.

(c) Disposition Under Law of War.–The disposition of a person under
the law of war as described in subsection (a) may include the following:
(1) Detention under the law of war without trial until the
end of the hostilities authorized by the Authorization for Use
of Military Force.
(2) Trial under chapter 47A of title 10, United States Code
(as amended by the Military Commissions Act of 2009 (title XVIII
of Public Law 111-84)).
(3) Transfer for trial by an alternative court or competent
tribunal having lawful jurisdiction.
(4) Transfer to the custody or control of the person’s
country of origin, any other foreign country, or any other
foreign entity.

(d) Construction.–Nothing in this section is intended to limit or
expand the authority of the President or the scope of the Authorization
for Use of Military Force.
(e) Authorities.–Nothing in this section shall be construed to
affect existing law or authorities relating to the detention of United
States citizens, lawful resident aliens of the United States, or any
other persons who are captured or arrested in the United States.
(f) Requirement for Briefings of Congress.–The Secretary of Defense
shall regularly brief Congress regarding the application of the
authority described in this section, including the organizations,
entities, and individuals considered to be “covered persons” for
purposes of subsection (b)(2).

The above is the entire section directly from the Government Printing Office. Should you need to verify it for yourself, feel free to read the entire bill here. You can simply do a search for “1021″ once on the page (it will be the 9th 1021 found, at least by Chrome).

As you can see from what I have posted above there is no language in that bill that allows the feds to detain you for “any reason they wish”. It also states explicitly that “Nothing in this section is intended to limit or expand the authority of the President or the scope of the Authorization for Use of Military Force”. It other words it really didn’t change much of anything.

Also of note is Sec 1022, which some folks might also chose to find "sinister. The pertinent portions are quoted below:

(b) Applicability to United States Citizens and Lawful Resident
Aliens.–
(1) United states citizens.–The requirement to detain a
person in military custody under this section does not extend to 
citizens of the United States.
(2) Lawful resident aliens.–The requirement to detain a
person in military custody under this section does not extend to
a lawful resident alien of the United States on the basis of
conduct taking place within the United States, except to the
extent permitted by the Constitution of the United States.

Section 1022 makes it pretty damned clear that this law doesn’t extend to U.S. citizens. If that doesn’t seem believable, read it again slowly. The language is quite clear and to the point.

There is nothing that angers me more than seeing people being misled by rumors of government conspiracies and wasting their time going on and on over such drivel. Anytime you see a law quoted that is supposedly going to make us all lose our rights I strongly suggest you look it up. You can find each and every law by searching the Thomas site (Library of Congress). While I don’t mind writing these articles, I sure wish I wasn’t the only one out there doing some fact checking.

So in closing, I hope we can all help to change the way our government does business. However, for our own good, let’s stick to fighting real problems like gun control, the disaster known as Obamacare, government waste, corruption and all the other things that can really use our attention. Let’s make sure we all vote. Let’s discuss politics with our friends and make sure they vote. Let’s continue to piss off the liberals each and everyday. But for the sake of my blood pressure, can we take off the tin-foil hats and stick to reality? That would make me happy. I hate to see resources wasted on drivel. Thanks.

You may now return to your regularly scheduled surfing.

Tim

For more good stuff visit my primary website.

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Additional info on this subject can be found here on the Daily Caller website.