There's absurdity, and then there's loopy.
John McCain, in apparent attempt to grab hold of the mantle of neo-con nuttiness where the last administration left off, apparently thinks that it is a "serious mistake" by the FBI and law enforcement if accused Times Square attempted bomber Faisal Shahzad was read his Miranda rights.
"Obviously that would be a serious mistake...at least until we find out as much information we have," McCain said during an appearance on "Imus in the Morning" when asked whether the suspect, 30-year-old Faisal Shahzad, a naturalized American citizen from Pakistan.
"Don't give this guy his miranda rights until we find out what it's all about," McCain added.
This story has it all: the Constitution, terrorism, McCain, and...Don Imus!
But seriously folks, the irony is apparently lost on Sen. McCain...because Shahzad is a U.S. Citizen. But hey, McCain got his law degree from a matchbox apparently...oh wait, McCain doesn't have a law degree. Never mind. (And given all of this, yet another bullet dodged by McCain/Sarah! '08).
Apparently, in the Republican Party's attempt to spin further down the hole of shredding our Constitution in the name of the GWOT, now the meme is that Shahzad should be classified as an enemy combatant.
Never mind that we've been down this road with Jose Padilla and a host of other cases, including Hamdi, which would seem to indicate that such classification wouldn't be looked upon too kindly by our Courts for U.S. citizens.
But I'll make McCain and gang a deal. God forbid a right-wing "domestic" terrorist try something like this in the future, if they should say we should suspend Miranda, then hey, I'll reconsider.
Until then, Shahzad should get as much due process as he is entitled to get.
Just like Tim McVeigh did.
UPDATED: From Alex Parnee at Salon.com...nice take on the story:
McCain made his remarks to racist chauvinist asshole shock jock Don Imus, of course.
"There's probably about 350 different charges he's guilty off -- attempted acts of terror against the united States, attempted murder," said McCain, cautioning that he's not privy to the charges with which Shahzad might be charged. "I'm sure there's a significant number to warrant the death penalty."
Or, you know, the biggest charges could just be tossed out if it's revealed that Shahzad wasn't informed of his rights under the Constitution, at the behest of people like John McCain. That would be a wonderful victory for America.