Today's Article
Federal officials are
ready to kill U.S.
citizens they feel are
involved in terrorist
activities--and to do
so without a trial.
ready to kill U.S.
citizens they feel are
involved in terrorist
activities--and to do
so without a trial.
The American Spark
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Feds May Kill U.S. Citizens Suspected Of 'Terrorist Activity'
By Cliff Montgomery - Mar. 9th, 2010
A Washington Post article printed on January 27th held a remarkable statement:
"Both the CIA and the JSOC [Joint Special Operations Command of the Department of Defense] maintain lists
of individuals...whom they seek to kill or capture," stated the paper.
"The JSOC list includes three Americans, including [Islamist cleric Anwar al-] Aulaqi, whose name was added
late last year.
"As of several months ago, the CIA list included three U.S. citizens, and an intelligence official said that
Aulaqi's name has now been added," according to the Post article.
A few weeks later, the Post printed a correction of some of these bold statements.
"The article referred incorrectly to the presence of U.S. citizens on a CIA list of people the agency seeks to kill
or capture," stated The Washington Post in a correction which ran in the paper's February 12th edition.
"After The Post's report was published, a source said that a statement the source made about the CIA list was
misunderstood...and a CIA spokesman said that The Post's account of the list was incorrect," the newspaper
continued.
In others words, the report was wrong about the CIA list because the Agency said it was wrong...
But it's what The Washington Post did not retract that deserves a more immediate attention.
"The military's Joint Special Operations Command maintains a target list that includes several Americans," the
paper verified.
"In recent weeks," the Post continued, "U.S. officials have said that the government is prepared to kill U.S.
citizens who are believed to be involved in terrorist activities that threaten [other]Americans."
The correction may be found online, printed just above the Post article.
And at a House Intelligence Committee hearing held on February 3rd, Director of National Intelligence Dennis
Blair testified that as far as he was concerned, federal agents may kill U.S. citizens living abroad who are
thought to be involved in terrorist activity.
"We don't target people for free speech," he claimed before the panel. "We target them for taking action that
threatens Americans."
"We take direct action against terrorists in the intelligence community," Blair said as a response to queries from
Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-MI), the committee's top Republican.
"If...we think that direct action will involve killing an American, we get specific permission to do that," added
Blair.
That Mr. Blair and other federal officials may be acting out of some genuine patriotic intention frankly is
irrelevant. We at The American Spark don't care what U.S. government officials hope to do; we are only
concerned with what they actually do.
And it appears that what they are actually doing is killing American citizens without a trial.
Since there are no trials for these executions--and thus no genuine oversight of government officials--precisely
who determines which of our fellow citizens may improperly "threaten" other Americans?
And what if these same government officials--who have gotten so much so wrong over the last several years--
get this wrong as well?
Apparently no one in our government has thought that far ahead.
Like what you're reading so far? Then why not order a full year (52 issues) of The American Spark
e-newsletter for only $15? A major article covering an story not being told in the Corporate Press will be
delivered to your email every Monday morning for a full year, for less than 30 cents an issue. Order Now!
By Cliff Montgomery - Mar. 9th, 2010
A Washington Post article printed on January 27th held a remarkable statement:
"Both the CIA and the JSOC [Joint Special Operations Command of the Department of Defense] maintain lists
of individuals...whom they seek to kill or capture," stated the paper.
"The JSOC list includes three Americans, including [Islamist cleric Anwar al-] Aulaqi, whose name was added
late last year.
"As of several months ago, the CIA list included three U.S. citizens, and an intelligence official said that
Aulaqi's name has now been added," according to the Post article.
A few weeks later, the Post printed a correction of some of these bold statements.
"The article referred incorrectly to the presence of U.S. citizens on a CIA list of people the agency seeks to kill
or capture," stated The Washington Post in a correction which ran in the paper's February 12th edition.
"After The Post's report was published, a source said that a statement the source made about the CIA list was
misunderstood...and a CIA spokesman said that The Post's account of the list was incorrect," the newspaper
continued.
In others words, the report was wrong about the CIA list because the Agency said it was wrong...
But it's what The Washington Post did not retract that deserves a more immediate attention.
"The military's Joint Special Operations Command maintains a target list that includes several Americans," the
paper verified.
"In recent weeks," the Post continued, "U.S. officials have said that the government is prepared to kill U.S.
citizens who are believed to be involved in terrorist activities that threaten [other]Americans."
The correction may be found online, printed just above the Post article.
And at a House Intelligence Committee hearing held on February 3rd, Director of National Intelligence Dennis
Blair testified that as far as he was concerned, federal agents may kill U.S. citizens living abroad who are
thought to be involved in terrorist activity.
"We don't target people for free speech," he claimed before the panel. "We target them for taking action that
threatens Americans."
"We take direct action against terrorists in the intelligence community," Blair said as a response to queries from
Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-MI), the committee's top Republican.
"If...we think that direct action will involve killing an American, we get specific permission to do that," added
Blair.
That Mr. Blair and other federal officials may be acting out of some genuine patriotic intention frankly is
irrelevant. We at The American Spark don't care what U.S. government officials hope to do; we are only
concerned with what they actually do.
And it appears that what they are actually doing is killing American citizens without a trial.
Since there are no trials for these executions--and thus no genuine oversight of government officials--precisely
who determines which of our fellow citizens may improperly "threaten" other Americans?
And what if these same government officials--who have gotten so much so wrong over the last several years--
get this wrong as well?
Apparently no one in our government has thought that far ahead.
Like what you're reading so far? Then why not order a full year (52 issues) of The American Spark
e-newsletter for only $15? A major article covering an story not being told in the Corporate Press will be
delivered to your email every Monday morning for a full year, for less than 30 cents an issue. Order Now!
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