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Who does the Bill of Rights cover?
This Week | 2 Dec 01 | Bob Barr

Posted on 12/02/2001 8:50:01 AM PST by H.Akston

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To: Colt .45
This is the section of the Equal rights which everyone is carping about ... nowhere does it state that Legal or illegal aliens have the guarantee of our Constitutionall afforded rights. It does however specifically state "citizens of the United States"!

You apparently can't read very well. Okay, here's what it says: "nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." The fact that it just defined who is a citizen doesn't change the fact that at this exact point is says "person". A person's a person, no matter how small, or foreign. You seem to think that since it says "citizens of the United States" at another point, that magically changes the letters P-E-R-S-O-N into some other set of letters. It doesn't.

I already addressed the preamble thing, and habeas corpus is neither here nor there.

I would submit that it is you who is a moron.

He's not. You're in the running, however.

141 posted on 12/02/2001 11:25:05 AM PST by A.J.Armitage
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To: Iwo Jima
An alien legally in the United states who has been admitted into the country under a nonimmigrant visa is generally prohibited from receiving or possessing firearms and a licensee may not lawfully transfer firearms to such alien. In addition, a foreign visitor is not a resident of a state and, therefore, may not purchase and take delivery of a firearm in the United states. A foreign visitor may purchase a firearm and have it exported by a licensee. The licensee must obtain an export license from the State Department for this type of transaction.

here's what the BATF says on the subject...

142 posted on 12/02/2001 11:26:02 AM PST by go star go
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To: exodus
The government prohibits convicted felons from owning firearms. Is this unconstitutional?
143 posted on 12/02/2001 11:26:54 AM PST by Wissa
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To: Iwo Jima; All
Now, can you or anyone else cite any legal authority for the starling and provocative assertion that the Bill of Rights does only applies to citizens?

I can - sort of. SCOTUS in US v. Verdugo-Urquidez, 494 U.S. 259 (1990), pretty clearly states that extraterritorial aliens are not generally entitled to the protections of the Constitution. On the other hand, SCOTUS has also repeatedly ruled that resident aliens are entitled to many constitutional protections, particularly those afforded by the 4'th, 5'th, and 14'th amendments (see, e.g., INS v. Lopez-Mendoza, 468 U.S. 1032 (1984)).

Now, this is obviously not the same as making the blanket statement that non-citizens have no rights and are not entitled to the protections of the Constitution.

So, my question to you, and to everyone, is - would everyone be more comfortable if the Bush Executive Order explicitly stated that tribunals applied only to non-resident non-citizens (e.g., aliens outside the territories and protectorates of the United States)?

Personally, I'd be a lot more comfortable with it. Am I alone here?
144 posted on 12/02/2001 11:28:04 AM PST by general_re
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To: go star go
I do not derive my views on the Constitution from the BATF. As far as I can tell, the BATF does not believe that anyone can Consitutionally or legally own a firearm.
145 posted on 12/02/2001 11:29:00 AM PST by Iwo Jima
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To: Iwo Jima
You said noone seriously argued that aliens couldn't own guns. Are you running away from that statement now?
146 posted on 12/02/2001 11:30:40 AM PST by go star go
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To: H.Akston
"Read the text of each, and you'll see who they apply to" Read the Text of the FIRST 7 WORDS IN THE CONSTITUTION, to see who the Constitution, and everything in it, applies to.

The first seven words of the Constitution indicate who is establishing it for the United States of America, nothing more.

Those who established it first declared:

"WE hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness --"

Many of them wanted some of those "unalienable Rights" listed in the Constitution and thus the Bill of Rights.

The same Men who justified establishing this government to insure the Rights give by the Creator to us all did not later deny them to non-citizens. One must believe their use of the words "citizen" and "person" in the Constitution are contextually appropriate for clarifying their intent.

147 posted on 12/02/2001 11:31:05 AM PST by eskimo
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To: Squantos
I'm here to learn so if anyone has the time to correct anything I've said , please do so....educate me........

Well, the first part of your education is that you don't need apostrophes for plurals, just possesives and contractions. :-)

The second part is, the military tribunals apparently aren't the same thing as military courts per the UCMJ. They don't follow the same procedures, and, more importantly, don't have the same standard of proof and rules of evidence. So what you already know doesn't necessarily apply.

148 posted on 12/02/2001 11:32:03 AM PST by A.J.Armitage
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To: A.J.Armitage
And you would be? And am I supposed to be impressed?

Look dude, the U.S. Constitution was drafted to cover 'US Government' and it was mandated for the US Citizens! You know ... government of the people! You seem to think that every dickhead who comes to this country falls under some protective blanket of rights. Well they don't, especially not when they are trying to deprive US Citizens of their inalienable rights .. you know ... life, and etc! When they operate in total contravention to international law, or civil law - they forfeit any rights they have except those which are designated by higher authority. I would submit that you need to go back and study the Founders intent before you pile on the liberal bandwagon.

149 posted on 12/02/2001 11:36:15 AM PST by Colt .45
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To: backup
Nice post, but I have one small issue.

Instead, the Government has only been given a handful of powers; the Bill of Rights technically WASN'T EVEN NECESSARY. Nowhere in Article I was Congress given the power to establish a religion.

There is this, "To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of the legislature of the state in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards, and other needful buildings."

150 posted on 12/02/2001 11:36:43 AM PST by A.J.Armitage
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To: mdittmar
So in other words, the Supreme Court was saying, even though the 5th amendment doesn't say it, they (the Court) doesn't think it's fair to exempt our armed forces of the right to trial by jury (6th amendment) and not exempt the opposing enemy forces of that same (6th amendment) right.

I agree with that, though I wish we would amend the 5th amendment to state clearly that captured enemy forces are part of the exception stated within the 5th amendment.

Amendment V

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

The part I have in bold should be changed to say :

except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, our own or those of our enemies, when in actual service in time of War or public danger;

151 posted on 12/02/2001 11:38:33 AM PST by Gumption
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To: A.J.Armitage
Where was Congress given the power to establish a religion in those ten square miles?
152 posted on 12/02/2001 11:40:47 AM PST by backup
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Comment #154 Removed by Moderator

To: logic101.net
Ok Tex, so the Constitution applies to all who are on our soil? So this means that if there is an invasion by say, Red China, we can't just shoot people in the uniform of Red China on sight, we have to call a cop to arrest them?

Many refuse to admit that we are at war. We have been attacked and our citizens killed.

155 posted on 12/02/2001 11:45:32 AM PST by cinFLA
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To: Colt .45
And you would be? And am I supposed to be impressed?

Some guy known only as "Colt .45" is asking for credentials.

It doesn't matter who I am. It matters what the Constitution says. If it says person, it means person.

Look dude, the U.S. Constitution was drafted to cover 'US Government' and it was mandated for the US Citizens!

You're confused. The fact that it covers the government doesn't mean its restrictions on the government are void when the government does something to a non-citizen.

You seem to think that every dickhead who comes to this country falls under some protective blanket of rights. Well they don't, especially not when they are trying to deprive US Citizens of their inalienable rights .. you know ... life, and etc! When they operate in total contravention to international law, or civil law - they forfeit any rights they have except those which are designated by higher authority.

You're getting at something true, but you mess it up almost beyond recognition. Yes, you should be punished when you violate others' rights (or, to put the same thought in other terms, when you commit fraud or initiate the use of force), i.e., you should lose your life, your liberty, or your property. That doesn't mean you lose your right to a fair trial, for an obvious reason. The whole point of a trial is to find out if you're guilty or not. At the start of the trial, that's not considered to have been established. You know, "innocent until proven guilty"

I would submit that you need to go back and study the Founders intent before you pile on the liberal bandwagon.

Since you obviously don't know very much about the Constitution, you're the one who needs to do some study.

156 posted on 12/02/2001 11:53:55 AM PST by A.J.Armitage
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To: general_re
"would everyone be more comfortable if the Bush Executive Order explicitly stated that tribunals applied only to non-resident non-citizens (e.g., aliens outside the territories and protectorates of the United States)?"

That would change everything for me. There would be few if any Constitutional problems that I can see. But then I would argue that it was unwise and unnecessary.

If you find a belligerant engaged in an act of war, just shoot him. If you can't kill him (because he surrenders while the CNN cameras are on, etc.), but you know that he has engaged in war crimes of such a magnitude that he must be tried for violations of the law of war, then I guess that you try him along with all others similarly situated in a Nuremburg-style tribunal. But we ought to try our best to keep those trials to a minimum.

Oh, I have a word to say about that special case of the American citizen who went to Afghanistan to fight for the Taliban and has now been captured. TREASON! Bring him home and have a very public trial observing all Constitutional safeguards and then hang him.

We need to send a very clear message to all those people who were born here and enjoyed the blessings of citizenship for all of their lives but who hate us and just can't wait to fight on the sides of our enemies in times of war. That's treason, and you will be tried and hanged.
157 posted on 12/02/2001 11:54:19 AM PST by Iwo Jima
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To: backup
Where was Congress given the power to establish a religion in those ten square miles?

They were given practically unlimited power over the capital, but not, of course, over anything else.

159 posted on 12/02/2001 11:56:21 AM PST by A.J.Armitage
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