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Civil Liberties
Congressman Kucinich is the only Democratic presidential candidate to have voted against the Patriot Act when the act was passed in 2001. He also voted against renewing the act in 2005.
Kucinich believes that the Bush administration has disastrously eroded American civil liberties. He is adamantly opposed to torture, wiretapping, and the detention camp at Guantanamo. Kucinich has said:
"Abu Ghraib, tortures--licensed. Guantanamo--people are not permitted to have a right to a trial. Habeas corpus has been trashed. You're looking at the one person who really understands what this document, the Constitution of the United States, is all about. I want equal justice. I want Osama Bin Laden brought to justice. Now, if he resists in an attempt to arrest him, you know, whatever happens happens. But I think that we as a country need to reinstate this Constitution. This is the basis of our strength, and so I'm going to proceed to--for the whole world to understand the full power of the U.S. Constitution and what our system of justice is really about."
Kucinich on the Issues
Immigration
Kucinich opposes the building of a fence along the Mexican border. In September 1998, he voted against creating more immigrant visas for skilled workers. In 2001, Kucinich voted to extend immigrant residency rules, and in May 2004, he voted against reporting illegal aliens who receive hospital treatment.
Kucinich approves of amnesty for some illegal immigrants. In a January 2004 presidential forum, he stated that "...people ought to have citizenship if they serve this country. We also ought to agree that there ought to be amnesty for anyone who has been working in this country and would otherwise be denied rights. Third, we ought to talk about how the Bush administration's program that they just announced is really a program for indentured servitude because what they are talking about is locking people into control by corporations."
Kucinich on the Issues
Iran
Kucinich does not believe that military force or sanctions should be an option in U.S. efforts to deter Iran's nuclear program. He does not believe Iran poses an imminent threat to the U.S., and believes the Bush administration has promoted the idea of an Iranian threat in order to achieve its geopolitical objectives. In a 2006 speech to Congress, Kucinich said:
"Notwithstanding what the words are in this bill, we have been here before. This Administration is trying to create an international crisis by inflating Iran's nuclear development into an Iraq-type WMD hoax. 'Iran is not an imminent threat'; this, from Dr. Hans Blitz, former Chief U.N. Weapons Inspector, speaking to our congressional oversight subcommittee the other day."
"This is a time for us to engage Iran with direct talks, our President to their President. This is the time to give assurance to Iran that we are not going to attack them."
Speech given by Kucinich on House floor, September 28, 2006
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