How Martial Law In America Will Affect You
Martial law occurs when the military or militarized law enforcement
replaces civilian authorities in order to impose military rule during an
emergency. Civil liberties are suspended. In the United States, a pivot
point that signals martial law is the suspension of habeas corpus – the
right to a hearing on whether an imprisonment is lawful. In practice,
habeas corpus means a person cannot be imprisoned without legitimate
charges and due process. The U.S. Constitution recognizes the suspension
of habeas corpus as an identifying feature of martial law in Article I,
Section 9, “The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be
suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public
Safety may require it.”
Obama is preparing to declare martial law in America. He may decide
not to do so but it is a prepared option that requires nothing more than
the say-so of one man. The necessary Executive Order has been
authorized. The National Defense Resources Preparedness grants Obama
power over “resources and services needed to support…plans and programs”
in “the event of a potential threat to the security of the United
States.” The grant of authority is so complete that it includes the
ability to commandeer technology, industry, and the nation’s other
resources down to its “food resources, livestock resources, and the distribution of farm equipment and commercial fertilizer.”
The legal framework for martial law is in place.
