Chris Dodd for President

Earlier today Senator Dodd issued the following statement on the Supreme Court's decision to hear Guantanamo Bay detainees:

"I am hopeful that the Court sees that several provisions of the Military Commissions Act cannot pass Constitutional muster. In its current form, the Military Commissions Act does not provide a credible process for bringing suspected terrorists to justice, stripping our nation of its moral authority and further imperiling our military personnel abroad. "Indeed, the erosion of Constitutional rights does not achieve their intended goal of increasing our security. Instead, it has reduced our standing in the world, making us more isolated and ultimately more vulnerable and less secure. "While the Supreme Court's review is necessary, I hope that Congress will also do its part to immediately change this law by supporting the Restoring the Constitution Act which develops a tough but fair system of bringing terrorists to justice."

On Monday Senator Dodd called for the closure of the prisons at Guantanamo Bay and asked all presidential candidates to support an up-or-down vote on the Restoring the Constitution Act. Senator Dodd was the first person to co-sponsor Senator Dianne Feinstein's bill to close Gitmo, S. 1249. We're happy to see that following Senator Dodd's call for leadership from his presidential colleagues, Senator Clinton added her name as a co-sponsor to Feinstein's bill. The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that said "the military cannot seize and imprison civilians -- let alone imprison them indefinitely" has gotten a great deal of attention online. Glenn Greenwald writes:

No matter how many times one thinks about it, reads or writes about it, it never ceases to amaze -- literally -- that our government has asserted the power to imprison people, including those on U.S. soil, and keep them locked up for years and years, indefinitely, without so much as charging them with any crime or even allowing them access to lawyers. And that is to say nothing of what is done to them while being held completely incommunicado. That was just a line that one thought the American Government could not cross without enormous backlash. Yet our government has done exactly that for years -- and has spawned a set of presidential candidates vowing to continue doing so at least as aggressively, if not more so -- without much protest at all.

Constitutional scholar Marty Lederman has put forth a number of salient posts about the meaning of the al-Marri decision and the Fourth Circuit's argument that the Bush administration dangerously overreached in its detention, charging, and denial of habeas corpus. Read Lederman's analysis here and here. What all of this speaks to is the need for leadership to restore the Constitution today. The Military Commissions Act is one prominent place where the Bush administration has undermined rule of law and America's standing in the world. But for us to rehabilitate our moral authority and make us more secure, we need to start addressing these issues today. As McJoan of DailyKos said last week, "There really is no greater cause for the rule of law, for our liberty, for the basis of our very government." We need to close Guantanamo Bay's prisons. We need to restore habeas corpus. We need to gut the Military Commissions Act. And most of all, we need those who would wish to lead us in 2009 to step up today and stand with conviction for these critical changes. Senator Dodd is ready to lead - hopefully his colleagues will follow.

Senator Dodd delivered the commencement address at Cardozo Law School in New York earlier today. The speech was titled "Restoring Our Constitution: Away From Vengeance, Toward the Rule of Law." Here is an excerpt of the speech, as prepared. The full text of the remarks can be read here.

Restoring our standing in the world starts with restoring our moral authority – it starts with restoring our Constitution. That is why I have introduced legislation establishing military commissions that will allow us to vigorously bring terrorists to justice while upholding our nation’s historic legal principles. History has shown us that even in the face of unprecedented horror, the two goals are not mutually exclusive. To the contrary, they are wholly dependent on one another. By insisting that suspected terrorists will be treated consistent with norms of our national law and the Geneva Conventions, to which we remain a signatory, I believe we can make the military commission process protect national security while upholding the international credibility so critical to securing America. If last century’s most heinous criminals could receive due process, there’s no reason in the world this century’s most heinous criminals should be denied it. That is why, this summer, I intend to make a major push to bring the Restoring the Constitution Act to a vote in the United States Senate and restore habeas corpus rights once and for all. It’s time we once again draw upon America’s historic principles and ideals to secure the country that created them.

One of the largest reasons I joined the Dodd campaign and why I think Chris Dodd is the best candidate for the presidency is his leadership on restoring the Constitution and protecting the right of habeas corpus for all Americans. He fundamentally understands that our moral authority is tied into our ability to lead and our security. Habeas corpus is an unfortunately isn't an issue that's talked about a lot in American politics. It is a right enshrined in the US Constitution to ensure that when the government detains a person, that person must be brought before a court and be tried or released. Habeas corpus is a hallmark of what protects our republic from the creep of tyranny. The right of habeas corpus was gutted by the Military Commissions Act of 2006, a law whose bland name belies its pernicious character. A New York Times editorial in September, 2006 documented the extent of the MCA's reach beyond habeas and into our relationship with the Geneva Convention, how we treat enemy combatants, how our courts weigh secret and coerced evidence, how the MCA limits review by our independent judiciary, and a definition of torture that is so narrow as to exclude rape from being included. At some point, hopefully quite soon, the Iraq War will be over. Patriotic, courageous leaders will bind up our nation's wounds and we, as a nation, will move on as best we can. Hopefully we will be able to remember the mistakes that surrounded the Bush administration's policies before and during the Iraq War. But we will remain Americans and we will work together to restore our standing in the world. But habeas corpus and the rights enshrined in our Constitution that depend on it to have meaning are a part of our national DNA. And unless it is restored soon, we risk fundamentally altering who we are as a people and what we stand for in the world. In my humble opinion, short of responsibly ending the Iraq war, reversing the loss of Constitutionally protected rights during the Bush administration (and particularly under the MCA) is the most important challenge facing our nation starting January 20, 2009. But, like many of the issues that confront us today, we cannot afford to wait until the next president takes office to look for bold leadership to change our course. We need leadership today and Senator Dodd is standing up with conviction to do just that. I was excited to hear Senator Dodd state that in Sunday night's debate that the first thing he will do when elected president is "restore the constitutional rights in our country. This administration has done great damage to them. I would do that in the first day, I wouldn't wait 100 days." Senator Dodd isn't stopping there. He's continuing to push for his legislation, the Restoring the Constitution Act, to be given a vote in the Senate -- it would reverse the Military Commissions Act and return the rights crafted by our founders to the American public, while helping to restore our standing in the world. Senator Dodd will be giving a major policy speech today at Cardozo Law School that will lay out his vision for restoring habeas corpus, honoring the Geneva Conventions, and renewing America's moral authority in the world. This will make us more secure at home and abroad. And it's the best course for America. Ari Melber of The Nation wrote in January that Senator Dodd is "the best hope for rolling back the MCA." Senator Dodd is leading on this critical issue, but he needs your help - contact your senators and ask them to cosponsor the Restoring the Constitution Act. You can also become a citizen co-sponsor of the Restoring the Constitution Act by visiting http://restore-habeas.org.

Updated below Ari Melber of The Nation writes about Senator Dodd and habeas corpus.

Senator Chris Dodd, the most aggressive defender of the Constitution in the presidential race, is pushing legislation that would not only restore habeas, but also ban the use of evidence obtained through torture and recommit the U.S. to the Geneva Conventions. "We must recognize that our security is enhanced by upholding our nation's historic legal principles as we vigorously pursue terrorists," he said in a statement today. Dodd is giving a major address about his proposal at the Cardozo School of Law Commencement exercises in New York on Thursday, part of a larger effort to prioritize Constitutional rights on the national agenda – and in the presidential campaign. The Dodd Campaign has gathered over 10,000 "citizen cosponsors" for his bill, the Restoring the Constitution Act, while using YouTube, blog and netroots outreach to rally more support.

Atrios says he's "glad to see someone actually cares about that constitution." Christy Hardin Smith of FireDogLake refers her readers to Senator Dodd's Huffington Post op-ed, "his piece is great, so do take some time to read it for some wonderful perspective on the contrasts between the leadership of yesterday and the Bush Administration’s abject failures." Indiana blogger and podcaster Joh Padgett has included a short discussion of Senator Dodd's Huffington Post piece in today's Monticello Report. His commentary on Dodd's leadership on habeas corpus starts at 4:22 of the podcast:

From the blogs today, The Huffington Post has a blog posting from Presidential contender and Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd today advocating restoration of America's standing in the world by restoring our Constitutional values and habeus corpus rights. Many of the 2008 presidential hopefuls are looking for ways to differentiate themselves from the others and Dodd has been making waves with his subtle campaign advocating liberal democratic values and an emphasis on restoring respect for the Constitution. Visit huffingtonpost.com to read more.

D-Day likes Senator Dodd's leadership on restoring the Constitution. Justin Krebs of Working for Change agrees and Digby encourages readers to get involved to restore the Constitution. Update McJoan of DailyKos adds:

It's difficult to overstate the importance of what Dodd is attempting with this legislation. There really is no greater cause for the rule of law, for our liberty, for the basis of our very government.