ACLU Demands Information on U.S. Military Domestic Operations
Tom Burghardt | Global Research, October 25, 2008
On October 2, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request demanding information from the government on U.S. Northern Command’s (NORTHCOM) deployment of the 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Combat Brigade Team (BCT) on U.S. soil for “civil unrest” and “crowd control” duties.
Last month, Army Times published a piece detailing how the 1st BCT spent “35 of the last 60 months in Iraq.” The 1st BCT–also known as the “Raiders”–carried out house-to-house raids and engaged in close-quarters combat in the city of Ramadi to suppress Iraqi resistance to U.S. occupation, according to a report on the World Socialist Website.
Readers will recall my October 11 piece, “Militarizing the Homeland:” NORTHCOM’s Joint Task Force-Civil Support,” that described NORTHCOM’s Vibrant Response exercise at Fort Stewart, Georgia.
In tandem with the elite 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, the 1st BCT participated in mock drills designed to “coordinate with local governments and interagency organizations such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Emergency Management Agency,” U.S. Northern Command News reported.
The Pentagon revealed that 1st BCT is a key component of NORTHCOM’s Joint Task Force-Civil Support (JTF-CS), designed to “execute both homeland defense and civil support missions.” As I pointed out in a piece earlier this month, current Army doctrine is heavily-weighted towards contingency planning for “civil disturbances.”
Indeed, Army Times reported that the 1st BCT would be kitted out with “the first ever nonlethal package that the Army has fielded.” The publication reported, “the package includes equipment to stand up a hasty road block; spike strips for slowing, stopping or controlling traffic; shields and batons; and, beanbag bullets.” But after spilling the proverbial beans, Army Times retracted that portion of their report.
[…] Militarization of the American Homeland: Suppression of “Civil Disturbances” […]
Hilarity from the ACLU- the law was passed a long time ago and it took them that long to realize it went into effect Oct. 1st?
Wake up and see that they are just trying to jump on the wagon in case there is unrest.
FOIA- they could look at the law on the Internet H.R 5122.ENR- John Warner Defense Appropriations Act for FY 2007 aka Military Commissions Act signed into law by our duly elected officials.
Check out the civil disturbance statute 10 U.S.C sec 331-334 or The Stanford Act or …
The ACLU is just seeking press to justify its own existence…
http://ahrcanum.wordpress.com/2008/10/01/posse-comitatus-act/