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Congressman
Elijah E. Cummings |
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Congressman
Elijah E. Cummings |
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(12/1/01 Baltimore AFRO-American Newspaper)
by Congressman Elijah E. Cummings
The month of December will mark the 25th anniversary of that cold Annapolis morning in 1976 when I took the oath required of every new lawyer – our shared pledge to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
Now, a quarter-century later, we are living through a difficult time. Some Americans may be tempted to believe that our constitutional protections are luxuries that must be laid aside if we are to defeat terrorism.
I can understand that temptation. My brother was nearly killed at the Pentagon on September 11. My Washington office was contaminated with deadly anthrax spores.
Nevertheless, I continue to place my faith in the constitutional rights that bind us together as a great nation.
No ruler, however well-intentioned, can be trusted to guarantee our freedom. To the contrary, our national experience has taught us that only the constitutional separation of powers among the legislative, executive and judicial branches of our government will preserve the liberty we cherish.
That is why all Americans should be concerned by the Bush Administration’s movement away from constitutional norms and toward authoritarian rule.
The new "PATRIOT" anti-terrorism legislation demanded by the President violated the separation of powers principle. Executive power was vastly expanded while constitutional accountability in the federal courts was severely limited.
Then, on October 31, Attorney General Ashcroft declared that Justice Department officials had his approval to intercept phone calls between detained individuals and their attorneys. Ten days later, the Administration announced a policy of ethnic profiling that has targeted 5,000 Arab male visitors to the United States for intensive questioning.
Finally, on November 13th, President Bush issued an executive order that created secret military courts to try immigrants and other foreigners for suspected terrorist offenses.
If the Bush Order is not successfully challenged, those accused of terrorist activities could be sentenced to death after being denied most of the constitutional due process protections that we consider to be fundamental: the right to a public trial in a federal court; the right to be convicted only upon proof of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt; the requirement that a guilty verdict be unanimous, the right to effective and independent legal counsel of our own choosing, and the right to an independent judicial appeal.
It is noteworthy that these actions by the President and his Attorney General have disturbed conservatives as well as liberals. Conservative columnist William Safire, for example, has accused the Bush Administration of "seizing dictatorial power," a criticism echoed in substance by conservative Representative Robert L. Barr, Jr. (R-GA.).
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT.) and Senator Orrin G. Hatch (R-UT), the committee’s ranking Republican, have called upon Attorney General Ashcroft to explain the Administration’s actions to the Congress. Meanwhile, Congressman John Conyers (D-MI), the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, has publicly reminded the Attorney General that the Constitution applies just as forcefully today as it did before September 11th.
Congressman Conyers has urged the Bush Administration to reconsider its assertions of unilateral executive power. He has advised the Administration to consult with the Congress " . . . before issuing any further edicts that erode our civil liberties . . . ."
The Administration would be wise to heed this advice.
Both the Congress and the American people deserve a public explanation that will allow us to knowledgeably assess the executive branch’s recent divergence from constitutional norms. We have yet to receive convincing evidence that the federal civil courts – and the full due process of law that those courts were created to guarantee – would hinder the successful prosecution of terrorist acts.
When Attorney General Ashcroft and I first became lawyers many years ago, we took the same oath to protect and defend the Constitution. He should recall the fundamental constitutional principle expressed by former Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg in Kennedy v. Mendoza-Martinez.
"The Constitution of the United States," the Justice declared, "is a law for rulers and people, equally in war and peace, and covers with the shield of its protection all classes of men, at all times, and under all circumstances . . . ."
Justice Goldberg’s observation should remind all of us that the moment we agree to exclude some people from constitutional protection will be the same moment when our own liberty becomes less secure.
If we are to preserve the legacy of freedom that is America’s greatest contribution to the world, we must recognize that we are living in a decisive period for the future of liberty. Ours is a time when all Americans must remain vigilant.
-The Honorable Elijah E. Cummings represents the 7th Congressional District of Maryland in the United States House of Representatives.
