To establish a national commission on presidential war powers and civil liberties.
Latest action · Jun 12, 2009 Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 6, 2009
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Establishes the National Commission on Presidential War Powers and Civil Liberties to investigate, and report to the President and Congress on, the broad range of policies of the Bush Administration that were undertaken under claims of unreviewable war powers, including: (1) detention by the Armed Forces and the intelligence community; (2) the use by such entities of enhanced interrogation techniques or techniques not authorized by the Uniform Code of Military Justice; (3) "ghosting" or other policies intended to conceal an individual's capture or detention; (4) extraordinary rendition; and (5) domestic warrantless electronic surveillance.
Cosponsors 50
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 6, 2009 to Oct 27, 2009; 5 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-MA | Bill Delahunt | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-GA | Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-NY | Jerrold Nadler | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-TX | Sheila Jackson Lee | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-TN | Steve Cohen | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-FL | Debbie Wasserman Schultz | Jan 7, 2009 | |
| D-IL | Luis V. Gutierrez | Jan 7, 2009 | |
| D-VA | Rick Boucher | Jan 7, 2009 | |
| D-VA | Robert C. "Bobby" Scott | Jan 7, 2009 | |
| D-WI | Tammy Baldwin | Jan 7, 2009 | |
| D-IL | Janice D. Schakowsky | Jan 14, 2009 | |
| D-MN | Keith Ellison | Jan 15, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Maurice D. Hinchey | Jan 15, 2009 | |
| D-AZ | Raúl M. Grijalva | Jan 15, 2009 | |
| D-OR | David Wu | Jan 21, 2009 | |
| D-OR | Peter A. DeFazio | Jan 21, 2009 | |
| D-MA | Barney Frank | Feb 4, 2009 | |
| D-AZ | Ed Pastor | Feb 4, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Barbara Lee | Feb 9, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Carolyn B. Maloney | Feb 9, 2009 | |
| D-MD | Elijah E. Cummings | Feb 9, 2009 | |
| R-NC | Walter B. Jones | Feb 9, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Bob Filner | Feb 11, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Linda T. Sánchez | Feb 12, 2009 | |
| D-OH | Betty Sutton | Mar 5, 2009 | |
| D-MA | James P. McGovern | Mar 5, 2009 | |
| D-NJ | Rush Holt | Mar 5, 2009 | |
| D-FL | Robert Wexler | Mar 16, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Louise McIntosh Slaughter | Mar 26, 2009 | |
| D-NY | Yvette D. Clarke | Apr 21, 2009 | |
| D-TX | Lloyd Doggett | Apr 22, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Adam B. Schiff | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-TX | Al Green | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-MD | Donna F. Edwards | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-VA | James P. Moran | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-WA | Jay Inslee | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-OH | Marcy Kaptur | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Maxine Waters | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-MA | Michael E. Capuano | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-IL | Phil Hare | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-NJ | Robert E. Andrews | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Sam Farr | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-CA | Susan A. Davis | Apr 23, 2009 | |
| D-ME | Michael H. Michaud | May 4, 2009 | |
| D-CT | Rosa L. DeLauro | May 13, 2009 | |
| D-OH | Dennis J. Kucinich | Jun 2, 2009 | |
| D-WA | Jim McDermott | Jun 2, 2009 | |
| D-IN | André Carson | Jun 11, 2009 | |
| D-IL | Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. | Sep 9, 2009 | |
| D-NC | Melvin L. Watt | Oct 27, 2009 |
Committees 4
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Armed Services Committee | Referred Jan 6, 2009 |
| House | Intelligence (Permanent Select) Committee | Referred Jan 6, 2009 |
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Jan 6, 2009 |
| Constitution and Limited Government Subcommittee | Referred Jun 12, 2009 | |
| House | Foreign Affairs Committee | Referred Jan 6, 2009 |
Actions 7
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jun 12, 2009Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.
- Jan 6, 2009Introduced in House
- Jan 6, 2009Referred to House Armed Services
- Jan 6, 2009Referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committees on Intelligence (Permanent Select), the Judiciary, and Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- Jan 6, 2009Referred to House Intelligence (Permanent)
In the Congressional Record 2
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H477 | Steve Cohen D-TN | Jan 22, 2009 |
| House | Debate and remarks H435–H437, H439 | Keith Ellison D-MN, Sheila Jackson Lee D-TX | Jan 21, 2009 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 111-10 | HELPING FAMILIES SAVE THEIR HOMES IN BANKRUPTCY ACT OF 2009, AND THE EMERGENCY HOMEOWNERSHIP AND EQUITY PROTECTION ACT174 pages | Judiciary Committee | Jan 22, 2009 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 6501 | To establish a national commission on presidential war powers and civil liberties. | Related bill | Dec 8, 2010 |
Titles 1
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To establish a national commission on presidential war powers and civil liberties.
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Government Operations and Politics.
- Advisory bodies
- Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
- Detention of persons
- Due process and equal protection
- Government Operations and Politics
- Government studies and investigations
- Human rights
- Intelligence activities, surveillance, classified information
- Military law
- Presidential administrations
- Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
- Right of privacy
- Terrorism
- War and emergency powers
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jan 6, 2009Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
