Letter to Prof. David Cole, Georgetown Univ.
Quotes from David Cole's book:
"The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, marked a quantum leap in the deadliness and audacity of terror. They revealed a vulnerability that many in the United States have never before appreciated."
"The horrific attacks of that day indelibly underscored the reality that the United States and its citizens are the targets of dangerous groups and individuals at home and abroad."
"The Antiterrorism Act of 1996…a precursor to the more infamous USA PATRIOT Act, resurrected guilt by association as a principle of criminal and immigration law. It created a special court to use secret evidence to deport foreigners labeled as 'terrorists'. It made support for the peaceful humanitarian and political activities of selected foreign groups a crime. And it repealed a short-lived law forbidding the FBI from investigating First Amendment activities, opening the door once again to politically focused FBI investigations."
"When terrorists hijacked four airplanes on a crisp Tuesday morning in September 2001, turning them into devastating explosives directed at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, they not only killed thousands of innocent civilians in the most brutal act of terrorism ever perpetrated, but they also threatened to change the fabric of American life…In the wake of those attacks, new security measures were undoubtedly warranted."
"As September 11 dramatically demonstrated, the United States faces a real terrorist threat from abroad." Prof.