CONGRESSWOMAN
ELLEN O. TAUSCHER
10
TH DISTRICT ~ CALIFORNIA

US House Seal


1034 Longworth HOB - Washington, D.C. 20515 - (202) 225-1880 (phone) & (202) 225-5914 (fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 26, 2006

CONTACT: Kevin Lawlor (202) 225-1880
http://www.house.gov/tauscher/

Rep. Ellen Tauscher to Oppose Military Commissions Bill

Washington, DC – Tuesday evening, Rep. Ellen Tauscher released the following statement announcing her opposition to current House Legislation, H.R. 6166, authorizing Military Commissions for terrorists being held in United States custody.

Five years after 9/11 we have yet to try a single terrorist responsible for the attacks; it must be made clear that waiting another five years to see those responsible held accountable is unacceptable.  While I was a strong supporter of the original McCain bill in the Senate, I cannot support the current version which both threatens the safety of our troops and compromises our values.   Furthermore, I fear this bill will be held in legal limbo, further delaying punishment for terrorists.  Instead of clearly banning abuse and torture, the President’s proposal reinterprets the Geneva Conventions’ guidelines and leaves in question whether or not we will undertake many of the same actions it seeks to ban.  Agreeing to such an ambiguous compromise that basically allows the President to define torture when and how he sees fit will undoubtedly put our Armed Forces at risk of abuse while doing little to obtain the intelligence we need from terrorists currently detained.”

 

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