Excerpts from White House
Briefing, December 17, 2001
Questions & Answers with Ari Fleisher
- Topic: Military Tribunals
Q:
And there's one other thing that has happened in the past couple of days. The
Pentagon is now confirming that members of the al Qaeda are in the custody of
the United States military. Under the executive order that the President signed,
he, alone, will make the decision as to who would stand trial before a military
tribunal.
What's the process? What's the public record that would or would not be laid
down for the President, himself, making that decision?
MR. FLEISCHER:
Well, I think the case of Mr. Moussaoui is indicative of the process, in a matter
where there is somebody who may be a likely candidate for a military tribunal.
The President will listen to the advice of his advisors. The President will
meet as necessary with the Attorney General or others who are involved. And
the criteria the President laid down are that he would consider the option of
a military tribunal if such a trial would help protect the national security
interests of the country, with a particular eye on protecting sources are methods
that are used to gather intelligence in the conduct of the war.
That was not the case with Mr. Moussaoui and the trial will proceed through
the normal civilian courts.
Q:
And will there be any finding, any kind of public record of how he reaches such
a decision?
MR. FLEISCHER:
Just like I did there, just as I did immediately on the day that General Ashcroft
announced that the trial of Mr. Moussaoui would proceed and you received the
indictment of Mr. Moussaoui, we'll answer all the questions we can.
Q:
Is that the process he's going to follow in considering John Walker Lindh. And
do you have any more information --
MR. FLEISCHER:
Well, Mr. Walker, there's no consideration of a military tribunal. The military
tribunals are exclusively for non-citizens of this country; Mr. Walker is a
citizen.
Q:
But will the President make the ultimate decision on his legal process?
MR. FLEISCHER: I
don't believe -- it's really not the same. In the case of a military tribunal,
that is reserved for the President, alone, to make the judgment about whether
somebody should be tried in a military court or not. There is a series of procedures
that are different from that in civilian matters.
With Mr. Walker, the government is still
ascertaining what the facts are involved; the Department of Defense and others
are still inquiring to determine exactly what happened to Mr. Walker, how he
came to be a Taliban; what activities he factually engaged in as a member of
the Taliban. All that are the relevant facts that need to be gathered, and those
facts are still being assessed.
Q:
And are you getting information that he may have been more actively involved
in the Taliban, or al Qaeda, than previously thought? And will he be allowed
to see a lawyer any time soon?
MR. FLEISCHER: You need to ask those questions to the Department of Defense or the Attorney General. And the facts are still being gathered