The National Defense Authorization Act v. The Bill of Rights

Authors

David W. Bolton, Liberty University, Helms School of GovernmentFollow

Level of Education

Faculty Member/PhD Completed

Abstract

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is an annual renewal of authorization for the Pentagon to spend money separately appropriated in an appropriations bill. Authorizations contained within this controversial document have grown from permission to spend funding on military munitions to allowing the use of indefinite detention and certain ‘advanced interrogation’ techniques by the members of the armed forces against those actively or perceived to be seeking to dismantle the integrity of the American governmental structure. In 2011, it was signed into law in the middle of the night on New Year's Eve by President Barack Obama. For the purposes of this review, general references to the NDAA will be particular to the 2011 version; specifically, sections 1021 and 1022 and the indefinite detention provisions will be the focus of this paper, although portions of other NDAAs will also be noted. The concepts of governmental overreach and judicial opinions surrounding the NDAA and its infringements of the protections for US citizens within the Bill of Rights will be explored, with the final assertion that this controversial legislation often oversteps the individual constitutional rights of its own citizens and is the most egregious violation of American liberties that has ever been allowed to persist since the founding of the United States of America.

Recommended Citation

Bolton, David W. (2024) "The National Defense Authorization Act v. The Bill of Rights," Liberty University Journal of Statesmanship & Public Policy: Vol. 5: Iss. 1, Article 4.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/jspp/vol5/iss1/4