'Occupy Wall Street' Protest at Grand Central Station Against Obama Signing Indefinite Detention Law

On Tuesday, about a hundred Occupy Wall Street protesters rallied in New York City's Grand Central Terminal to call attention to the National Defense Authorization Act which was signed into law by President Barack Obama on New Year's eve.



Hat Tip to Iris Mack, who writes:

Thanks Mr. President. Happy New Year!

The ACLU on the Indefinite Detention Act

The ACLU has issued a statement that in part reads:

President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law today. The statute contains a sweeping worldwide indefinite detention provision. While President Obama issued a signing statement saying he had “serious reservations” about the provisions, the statement only applies to how his administration would use the authorities granted by the NDAA, and would not affect how the law is interpreted by subsequent administrations. The White House had threatened to veto an earlier version of the NDAA, but reversed course shortly before Congress voted on the final bill...

We are incredibly disappointed that President Obama signed this new law even though his administration had already claimed overly broad detention authority in court,” said Romero. “Any hope that the Obama administration would roll back the constitutional excesses of George Bush in the war on terror was extinguished today. Thankfully, we have three branches of government, and the final word belongs to the Supreme Court, which has yet to rule on the scope of detention authority. But Congress and the president also have a role to play in cleaning up the mess they have created because no American citizen or anyone else should live in fear of this or any future president misusing the NDAA’s detention authority.”

The bill also contains provisions making it difficult to transfer suspects out of military detention, which prompted FBI Director Robert Mueller to testify that it could jeopardize criminal investigations. It also restricts the transfers of cleared detainees from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to foreign countries for resettlement or repatriation, making it more difficult to close Guantanamo, as President Obama pledged to do in one of his first acts in office.

Ron Paul Furious About Indefinite Detention Act (NDAA)

Ron Paul: An Arrogant Bold Step Has Been Taken to Legalize Martial Law

It appears that the National Defense Authorization Bill for Fiscal Year 2013 will be signed by President Obama despite some earlier indications from the White House that the President would veto the bill.

RT reports:

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin revealed recently that the bill in its current wording was drafted after the current administration asked for changes.

Already making its way through the House and Senate, the Act in its current wording will allow for Americans suspected of any “belligerent” act to be detained in Guantanamo Bay-style military prisons indefinitely for any alleged crimes without trial. With it now being revealed that the president put forth suggestions to draft the latest version of the legislation, Levin told the press Monday night, "I just can't imagine that the president would veto this bill.”

"I very strongly believe this should satisfy the administration and hope it will,” added Levin

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What's Ron Paul's take on this bill? Speaking to radio host Alex Jones, he said, as reported by RT:

Republican presidential hopeful Ron Paul finally became one of the first main figures to attack the act.
“This is a giant step – this should be the biggest news going right now – literally legalizing martial law,” said Paul. The congressman from Texas also appeared flabbergasted that the bill managed to escape discussion in any of the recent GOP debates, despite its provisions being detrimental to the US Constitution and the freedom of every man, woman and child in America.
“This is big,” continued Paul, adding “This step where they can literally arrest American citizens and put them away without trial….is arrogant and bold and dangerous.”

The bill could be on the desk of President Obama later this week.