The PCA is commonly and falsely believed to forbid the U.S. military from enforcing domestic law in all circumstances. In fact, it forbids it only in some circumstances.As for their claims that the "administration" is seeking the power...the stories I have seen is that they are reviewing the act based on a proposal to change the act submitted by Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., a Delaware Democrat:The primary sentence of the Posse Comitatus Act, as amended since 1878, now says, "Whoever, except in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress, willfully uses any part of the Army or Air Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute the laws shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both." "Posse comitatus" means "the power or force of the county," according to Black’s Law Dictionary (1990), and refers to any group empowered to enforce domestic law.
Contrary to popular belief, the PCA does not presently forbid all U.S. military units from enforcing domestic laws. The plain language of the law does not cover the Navy, Marine Corps or National Guard. "The PCA expressly applies only to the Army and Air Force," wrote Matthew Carlton Hammond in an article in the Washington University Law Quarterly (Summer 1997). "Congress did not mention the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, or National Guard in the PCA; accordingly, the PCA does not limit them. However, the Department of Defense has extended by regulation the PCA’s prohibitions to the Navy and Marine Corps."
The phrase "under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress" and the ambiguity of "to execute the laws" have been interpreted to allow numerous uses of the military to enforce domestic law since the PCA was enacted. Traditionally, a "constitutional" exception to the PCA has been interpreted broadly, said Hammond. "The exception permits military action to protect federal property and functions, to prevent loss of life, and to restore public order when local authorities cannot control a situation," he wrote. Congress already has explicitly carved out exceptions to the PCA for drug interdiction and for responses to biological and chemical incidents.
Tom Ridge, director of the Office of Homeland Security, said in several appearances on political talk shows yesterday that the Biden proposal should be considered but that he thinks it's "very unlikely" such a change will be made.Other "administration officials" have spoken out against this as well...The Biden proposal and the Ridge "knockdown" — not necessarily a "knockout" — may have been coordinated and calculated to measure public reaction. Mr. Ridge grew more emphatic later in the day in his view that military authorities should not have such powers of arrest over civilians.
"We need to be talking about military assets in anticipation of a crisis event. And, clearly, if you're talking abut using the military, then you should have a discussion about Posse Comitatus. It's not out of the question [that there could someday be a situation] when, in support of civilian authorities, we would give the National Guard or troops arrest ability" in a crisis situation where there may be "severe consequences to a community or region." However, he said such a scenario is "very unlikely."
In a separate interview on CNN's "Late Edition With Wolf Blitzer," Mr. Ridge was even more emphatic that the discussion is an academic one. "There's been absolutely no discussion with regard to giving military authorities the ability to arrest in their support of civilian authorities." Asked whether he believes the military should have the power to arrest U.S. citizens, he replied: "No."
But Pentagon officials, including Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, say there's no good reason to change the military policing ban, known as the Posse Comitatus Act.``It's not clear to me that there's any need to change Posse Comitatus at this time,'' Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last week. ``It has not been pointed out what the advantages to doing that would be.''
So once again...hype prevails, just as it has over the whole "Iraq/Congressional Approval" issue. The "administration" has not expressed that they want to change the PCA, they merely are reviewing it in light of Biden's proposal.