Friday, April 9, 2010

Is There Enough Evidence For A CIA Kill Order On An American Citizen?

Anwar al-Awlaki. Photo from The Long War Journal

Are Anwar al-Awlaki’s Ties to 9/11 Strong Enough for the Government to Kill Him? -- Washington Examiner

In an interview with Adam Serwer of The American Prospect, Ken Gude of the Center for American Progress says that the September 14, 2001 congressional Authorization to Use Military Force in response to 9/11 provides the Obama administration with the legal authority to launch the extra-judicial killing of an American citizen:

“There is much debate about how broadly both the Bush and Obama administrations have interpreted [the Authorization to Use Military Force], a concern that I share, but this instance is not one of those cases,” Gude says. “It cannot plausibly be argued that Awlaki, who is mentioned repeatedly in the 9/11 Commission report as having assisted the 9/11 hijackers, is not a person who aided the 9/11 attacks.”

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My Comment: From what I know, there is not enough evidence for a CIA hit squad to go after him. But what I know .... and what the White House knows .... these are two different things. The evidence must be very compelling for the White House to commit to this course of action.

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