Friday, October 11, 2013

Missing the Marque: The Usefulness of a Forgotten Constitutional Clause

This article by Joe Wolverton in The New American points out that a proposal by Ron Paul, if adopted, could have saved many lives in Bush's so-called war on terror.

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Bruce

'In April 1781, during the War for American Independence, the Continental Congress passed a resolution giving to “captains or commanders of private armed vessels commissioned by letters of marque or general reprisals” the following instructions and guidelines:

You may by force of arms attack, subdue, and seize all ships, vessels and goods, belonging to the King or Crown of Great Britain, or to his subjects, or others inhabiting within any of the territories or possessions of the aforesaid King of Great Britain, on the high seas, or between high-water and low-water marks. And you may also annoy the enemy by all means in your power, by land as well as by water, taking care not to infringe or violate the laws of nations, or laws of neutrality.

The use of this constitutionally sound method for capturing and trying enemies of the state hiding out in less-than-friendly countries is not just a matter of history and theory, however.

In October 2001, then-Representative Ron Paul (R-Texas) sponsored H.R. 3074, the Air Piracy Reprisal and Capture Act of 2001, and H.R. 3076, September 11 Marque and Reprisal Act of 2001. Paul introduced a similar measure in 2007.'

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