The Obama administration has quietly put into practice an ‘incomplete idea’ left over from the Bush II presidency: creating a de facto ‘presidential international assassination program.’ Court documents, evidence offered by Human Rights Watch and a special United Nations report allege that U.S citizens suspected of encouraging “terror” had been put on “death lists.” Reports of the ‘death’ list’ say Obama’s Director of National Intelligence told a Congressional hearing that the program was within the rights of the Executive Branch of the government and did not need to be revealed. At least two people are known to have been murdered by Central Intelligence Agency operatives under the program. When the program was challenged in a New York City court the judge refused to rule saying, “there are circumstances in which the executive’s decision to kill U.S. citizens overseas is constitutionally committed to the political branches and judicially unreviewable.”
Sources
William Fisher, Inter press Service, “Judge declines to Rule on Targeted Killings of U.S. Citizens,” Dec. 8 2010
http://ipsnorthamerica.net/news.php?idnews=3426
Human Rights Watch, Dec. 7, 2010, “Letter to President Obama – Targeted Killings
http://www.hrw.org//en/news/1210/12/07/letter-obama-targetedkillings
Glenn Greenwald, Salon.com, Apr. 7, 2010, “Confirmed: Obama Authorizes Assassination of U.S. Citizen,”
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2010/04/07/assassinations
Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Killings, Mar. 30, 2010 http://www.extrajudicialexecutions.org/unitedstateoof america1
Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Killings, Mar 30, 2010http://www.extrajudicialkillings.org/LegalObservations
Prof. Francis A. Boyle. Global Research, February 10, 2010, “Extra Judicial Killings: U.S. Government ‘Death List’ for American Citizens,”
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=17527
Student Researchers: John M. Curtin, Molliann Zahm, Maria Rose, Vincent Caruso & George Antzoulis (Niagara University)
Faculty Evaluator: Brian Martin Murphy (Niagara University)