Via Blue Jersey we learn that Senators Chris Dodd and Robert Menendez are going to introduce The Effective Terrorists Prosecution Act, a bill that will gut the Military Commissions Act of 2006 which Congress passed this past October. The MCA gave the president the authority to declare anyone, even American citizens, enemy combatants, detain them, torture them, and deny them habeas corpus.
WASHINGTON - TOMORROW, Tuesday, February 12, 2007, U.S. Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ) will hold a press conference to discuss the Effective Terrorists Prosecution Act which will restore habeus corpus rights, ban torture and uphold the Geneva Conventions. The senators, both members of the Foreign Relations Committee, will discuss the need for these protections in the fight against terrorism.
Menendez voted for the MCA. He is doing the right thing by working with Dodd to get it reversed now; I'd hope that Menendez is sufficiently appreciative of Senator Dodd for letting him jump onto this bill, which Dodd originally proposed in November 2006. That sounds petty, but I remember there being a great deal of shock and outrage on the blogs when Menendez joined Lieberman and ten other Democrats to vote in favor of the MCA.
Also, I'm a bit disappointed that this news broke on Blue Jersey and not a Connecticut blog.
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