WASHINGTON, 9 July 2006 — Two Senate committees will start drafting legislation on military commissions for Guantanamo detainees next week after the Supreme Court rejected the government’s plan for military trials.
The Senate Judiciary Committee will kick off the proceedings with a hearing Tuesday before the Senate Armed Services Committee begins to draft its own legislation on emergency tribunals July 13.
“Our committee will proceed with great care and deliberation in deciding the way forward legislatively on detainee trials in light of the Supreme Court’s decision,” John Warner, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement.
“Our goal is to recommend to the majority and minority leaders legislation that would survive future federal court challenges,” the senator said.
Warner said the world was following how the nation proceeds after the court delivered a serious setback to President George W. Bush’s initial approach, and that it was vital to carefully craft legislation suitable to both Republicans and Democrats.
“The whole world is watching how our country handles this issue, and our committee will proceed on any legislation very carefully, in a bipartisan way, to ensure America’s credibility.” The committee expects to hear several legal experts from the US armed forces.
The Supreme Court ruled June 29 that the Bush administration had no authority under US laws and the Geneva Conventions to set up military tribunals without the backing of Congress to try war on terror detainees held at a US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
The ruling cast doubt on Bush’s robust assertion of presidential power for national security purposes since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, and bolstered Congressional claims that they have the power to regulate White House-directed programs from the handling of detainees to conducting secret surveillance on US citizens.
Bush has said he wanted to work closely with Congress on legislation legalizing the military tribunals, and Warner said earlier that a bill could be examined by the full Senate in September.
