Cue The Liberal Outrage Over “Murder” Of Top Al-Qaeda Cleric Anwar Al-Awlaki…
Beyond parody.
(Salon) — It was first reported in January of last year that the Obama administration had compiled a hit list of American citizens whom the President had ordered assassinated without any due process, and one of those Americans was Anwar al-Awlaki. No effort was made to indict him for any crimes (despite a report last October that the Obama administration was “considering” indicting him). Despite substantial doubt among Yemen experts about whether he even has any operational role in Al Q aeda, no evidence (as opposed to unverified government accusations) was presented of his guilt. When Awlaki’s father sought a court order barring Obama from killing his son, the DOJ argued, among other things, that such decisions were “state secrets” and thus beyond the scrutiny of the courts. He was simply ordered killed by the President: his judge, jury and executioner. When Awlaki’s inclusion on President Obama’s hit list was confirmed, The New York Times noted that “it is extremely rare, if not unprecedented, for an American to be approved for targeted killing.”
After several unsuccessful efforts to assassinate its own citizen, the U.S. succeeded today (and it was the U.S.). It almost certainly was able to find and kill Awlaki with the help of its long-time close friend President Saleh, who took a little time off from murdering his own citizens to help the U.S. murder its. The U.S. thus transformed someone who was, at best, a marginal figure into a martyr, and again showed its true face to the world. The government and media search for The Next bin Laden has undoubtedly already commenced.
What’s most striking about this is not that the U.S. Government has seized and exercised exactly the power the Fifth Amendment was designed to bar (“No person shall be deprived of life without due process of law”), and did so in a way that almost certainly violates core First Amendment protections (questions that will now never be decided in a court of law). What’s most amazing is that its citizens will not merely refrain from objecting, but will stand and cheer the U.S. Government’s new power to assassinate their fellow citizens, far from any battlefield, literally without a shred of due process from the U.S. Government. Many will celebrate the strong, decisive, Tough President’s ability to eradicate the life of Anwar al-Awlaki — including many who just so righteously condemned those Republican audience members as so terribly barbaric and crass for cheering Governor Perry’s execution of scores of serial murderers and rapists — criminals who were at least given a trial and appeals and the other trappings of due process before being killed.
From an authoritarian perspective, that’s the genius of America’s political culture. It not only finds way to obliterate the most basic individual liberties designed to safeguard citizens from consummate abuses of power (such as extinguishing the lives of citizens without due process). It actually gets its citizens to stand up and clap and even celebrate the destruction of those safeguards.
Posted by ZIP on Friday, September 30, 2011, at 8:48 am | 
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Racist!!
OsamaHusseinIslamObama 2012′ (WTF)
(the terrorist-Uighur-ACORN-media choice)
-It’s never too early to campaign-
He forfeited any and all of his US Citizen’s Constitutional Rights when he took up arms against us and sided with the Muslims.
Grind him up for pig feed.
Uh, yeah, they told me if I voted for McCain that the US Gubmint would start killing citizens, and they were right……..
Oh not to worry libs, I’m sure that Obama has some layers of distraction between him and whoever made the decission. In the mean time don’t act like you care about his or any other life.
Actually, they did read him his rights….You have the right to remain silent……BOOM!
stomp your feet and throw a hissy fit like the3 yr olds you are.
then FOAD’
It was his own fault for not starting an SEIU chapter in Yemen. Then the president would have dropped money instead of bombs.
Suck it up, pansies.
I hope Mr Greenwald knew that he was also on his naughty list just like all the other Americans.
GPS Greenwald.
A litany of wrongs:
1. violation of O’s oath of office
2. violation of the constitution
3. tantamount to shooting the guy in the back, a cowardly move for a long time
4. Un-American, birth certificate or not
Will feel no remorse when O’s day arrives and better sooner than given time for more anti-American governance.
Were the ‘Wanted Dead or Alive’ posters only movie props?
Vote for Obama in 2012! (or he’ll unleash drones against you too)
“……who took a little time off from murdering his own citizens to help the U.S. murder its.”
————-
Does Greenwald have any comment on Project Gun Walker?
.
Shamir Khan is dead. Cool, That used to be the sentence for TREASON, what the little goat humper was guilty off.
Hope it hurt, a lot. If they bring his remains back to the US. I would like to make a trip and show my proper respects. Anybody have a source for 50 gallons of pig poop?
when you play with fire, you might get burned. In this instance, by a hellfire missile launched from a predator drone.
Anybody have a source for 50 gallons of pig poop?
Yeah, take Mooch with ya.
Anybody have a source for 50 gallons of pig poop?
Mooch.
Sorry bout double post!!
“funny” how they scream about rights of terrorists and enemies of the state, but it’s ok for squashing freedom of speech (1st amendment) or confiscation of guns (2nd amendment) of our citizens.
ok. it’s not funny.
The main tenant of this leftist cowpatty whine-a-ton rant that he was an amercian citizen, well he is NOT, he was a yemani/american citizen at best, and the only reason he was that is some leftist looked at the immigrantion stats and like some lunatic leftist zookeeper noted that we had no 7th century muslim
racist zealots and the zoo would be racist if we didn’t have some of these dumbfuck primtive cultural enrichers
He gave up any citizenship anywhere when he joined Al-Qaeda, LEGALLY he become “Hostis humani generis” an enemy of humanity, and is beyond legal protection, and could be dealt with as seen fit by any nation, even if that nation had not been directly attacked.
This dickhead whines about “stand up and clap”, hell, I’d volunteer to put a rope around the bastards neck and kick him off the platform, then tap dance a duelt along with him as he danced at the end of the rope.
Then I’d mount his skull on my car as a hood ornament, the rest I’d bury wrapped in a hog hide.
this piece of shit needs to realize that Al-Alwaki renounced his citizenship and is no longer protected by our Constitution.
i encourage EVERY commie, liberal, douchebag to do the same. if you hate this country so much, give up your rights to it.
*crickets*
what i thought, bunch of sissy girls w/ no integrity.
-President FFM.
1. He was engaged in active warfare against the United States, working for and with a hostile non-American entity (read: Enemy Nation or Terrorist Group.)
2. He could have, at any time, surrendered to U.S. authorities to “have his day in court.”
3. If he was engaged in hostile actions against the U.S. while on American soil, his capture would be the first priority of the FBI, however, should he resist violently, he would have been shot. Just like any other criminal or traitor they attempt to capture on U.S. soil.
How is his death any different from any other Al-Quada or Taliban operative encountered on the field of battle?
At least Greenwald is consistent with his nonsensical, binary world strawman arguments. You know, making the arguments from Brazil. He’s not in the US anymore, hates his country too much.
Yeah, and I ‘ll bet you’re worried, ain’t ya Glennie?
UberNerd nails it. Great post, dude.
The left is offended because they DON’T object to people who attack and kill Americans. It’s kind of perverse how they view killing Americans as a good thing. Perhaps Mr. Greenwald would shut-up and put his money where his mouth is and move to Yemen and participate in some of the same activities as the deceased.
Guys like Greenwald will mourn Awlaki and wave bizzaro-world interpretations of the Constitution in your face now. But rest assured, “socially conscious” people like him would march people like us straight to the re-education labor camp if they thought they had the power.
I celebrate no one’s death; but I won’t regret Awlaki’s, Khan’s or any other American who takes up arms against his country either. The world is better and our country safer with them gone.
I worry about the fact that I agree with Glen Greenwald and David Dayden (Firedoglake) on this point. I’m full-on for the death penalty, but, I don’t think it is a good policy for us to dispense justice without allowing a defense. I like to think we have more honor.
THis monster was not only responsible for terrorist plots and deaths but RECRUITING Trainees.
how many lives have been saved by his death?
The president can put out a kill order on an American citizen (who was not tried in absentia) but our military must mirandize enemy combatents on the field? Why does Barry not have to adhere to ROEs?
Kill killers? Makes sense to me. Rid the Earth of vermin? Now there’s a plan. Justice should be swift, not drawn out to make politically correct statements. I’m absolutely positive that the family members of the victims of these scum are dancing in the street. I am. They declared war on US you ignorant, liberal, namby-pamby. Just be glad tghe military is willing to protect ALL the citizens of the U.S.A. including morons like you.They are protecting your right to be as stupid as you want to be. POS.ABO
You got to know Greenwald and his little fag buds would love to kill conservatives.
Next time, we’ll have Planned Parenthood kill the jihadhis.
Libs won’t mind that, will they?
These people were military enemies of the US and they were killed by our military. That’s what happens to military enemies. Their citizenship, or former citizenship, is irrelevant.
Does anyone read anymore? The U.S.Constitution is not a long read. Study it and know it before you post here and look like a fool. “microcsme” above has proven to me that reading does work.
Was anybody else in the car, who just happened to be a terrorist ?
Anwar al-Awlaki is collateral damage.
Warning: Hanging out with known terrorists can be hazardous to your health
Seems Comrade O’ is getting more than a few notchs on his gun. 2 justified the others just collateral damage. Murder of Border Patrol agent Brian A. Terry ‘ Operation Fast and Furious’ and the Mexican citizens.
“He forfeited any and all of his US Citizen’s Constitutional Rights when he took up arms against us and sided with the Muslims.”
Rufus has no way of actually knowing whether this happened. he just believes the government.
To summarize: Rufus believes that if govt offers us health insurance, then it’s the height of tyranny, but , if government kills an American citizen without due process, because they always tell us the truth.
Weird worldview, you got there, hypocrite
“In the mean time don’t act like you care about his or any other life.”
This is like a masterclass in missing the point.
Greenwald never has. He’s just consistently argued for years his political affiliation doesn’t mean he applauds when the POTUS acts like a king. Declaring that certain US citizens can be killed by the state without any process.
Anyway, that’d only make an impression if you thought about it for a second or remembered who’s generally on the receiving end of that. I hear Waco is lovely this time of year.
Ed says: “When insects like Awlaki, whether a so-called “American citizen” or not are eliminated, the world becomes a better and safer place.
Deal with it, Greenwald. If America as we knew and loved her is to survive, it’s what we must do. It’s what we WILL do.”
Cool. So that’s that one US citizen in Yemen taken care of.
I wonder if the FBI’s published some assessment about who consitutes the greatest domestic terrorist threat to the US that we could check who else this would apply to.
Oh they did publish that report on domestic terrorist threats?
Yeeeeeeaaaaahhhhh.
1. Correct End Result.
2. Scary as hell precedent.
3. Unbelievably BAD Public Policy.
4. A Constitutional Abomination.
So when Obama puts a Kill Order on a US Citizen only this time its a “Domestic Terrorist” who has “declared war on the USA”…you guys are cool with that? Maybe like one of those Scary White Middle Class Domestic Terrorists that Janet Napolitano keeps warning us about?
Who decides who’s a Domestic Terrorist? Janet Napolitano?
Who decides who’s an “Enemy of the State”? Barack Obama?
How do we determine when Someone has “Declared War on his own Country”? What’s the threshold?
This is a slippery slope people….This man could have been tried in absentia. He should have been tried in absentia…I mean if the case is so clear, why not just dick around in Court for a few weeks, and keep things Constitutional.
If you aren’t uncomfortable with what just happened you should be.
Bottom Line:
NO LEFTIST SHOULD EVER HAVE AUTHORITY TO EXECUTE US CITIZENS WITHOUT A TRIAL…I THINK IT SHOULD BE APPARENT HOW THIS MIGHT BE PROBLEMATIC DOWN THE ROAD.
Have he blamed Bush yet?