ThinkProgress rounds up some of the over the top reactions of conservatives to the arrest of Faisal Shahzad. My favorite comes from New York's Rep. Peter King:
Did they Mirandize him? I know heâs an American citizen but still.
Just to stretch that out a bit, King is arguing that he knows Shahzad is a citizen, knows that citizens are guaranteed certain rights, knows that those rights include being read a Miranda warning and also include the various rights listed in the Miranda warning, but he still doesn't think Shahzad should have been Mirandized.
Why this concern? Because he thinks that the nation's chief law enforcement officer should have to clear his actions through every member of "the intelligence community." This despite evidence that treating suspects well, including Mirandizing them, does not stop suspects from talking. Showing a willingness to treat him well may even bring other witnesses out of the woodwork. With the underpants bomber, the good treatment he received is what brought his family forward to provide new information, and what kept him cooperating. Why would King think this situation would be different.
King seems simply to hate the freedoms that make America special.
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Why would the nationality of someone arrested by the police matter. Other than the right to consular access, surely a non US national should enjoy the same rights as a US national.
Scarcely a peep from that quarter about the Hutaree 9 being granted bail though.
Now why would that be...
The rights of a detainee apply to persons in the US - nothing about them depends on citizenship. Yet citizenship always is the first thing mentioned by these constitutional watchdogs. Maybe remedial civics education is in order.