President Obama, on his way back from vacation in Hawaii, quietly signed the National Defense Authorization Act, bitterly opposed by the American Civil Liberties Union and other civil libertarians.
Without much fanfare, Obama signed the legislation on December 31, permitting the national government to have powers it has never had
before in peacetime. The 565 page bill includes provisions allowing for indefinite detention of people that the government suspects are involved in international terrorism. The legislation seems to allow arrests by the military in the US of American citizens, a very terrifying idea! President Obama issued a signing statement regarding this legislation, but that does not mean that a future President would not abuse the law and have American citizens arrested.
This is a violation of the 4th Amendment to the Constitution, and one can hope for a Supreme Court decision declaring it unconstitutional, but that is probably not likely when it comes to powers involving war and security of the nation.
This can be seen as an extension of the Patriot Act, which many concerned people also think. is a violation of our civil liberties. The fact that members of both parties in Congress passed this legislation is also very troubling.
The danger that is most obvious is that a future President could use this new legislation in a way that President Obama has made clear his administration will NOT use it. The precedent has been set, and will be hard to reverse.
One could say that as long as a person stays within the law, does not break the law, is a citizen who does nothing illegal, that he or she does not have to be concerned. But even with that thought, there is still the possibility of innocent victims who become embroiled in the growing security network of the nation, and become victims.
So we have a new concern to be worried about regarding the BIll Of Rights!