Rand Paul and Ted Cruz Introduce Legislation to Prohibit Drone Killings of U.S. Citizens -- Read the Entire Bill Here

Credit: AP

U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Thursday introduced legislation to explicitly prohibit drone killings of American citizens on U.S. soil if they do not represent an imminent threat to the country.

Attorney General Eric Holder and White House Press Secretary Jay Carney both assured the country Thursday that the president does not have the constitutional authority to carry out drone strikes on non-combatant Americans in the United States. However, it seems that Cruz and Paul want to get that assurance in writing and make it officially against the law.

“Our Constitution restrains government power,” Cruz said in a statement. “The federal government may not use drones to kill U.S. citizens on U.S. soil if they do not represent an imminent threat. The Commander in Chief does, of course, have the power to protect Americans from imminent attack, and nothing in this legislation interferes with that power.”

Here is some of the key text in the bill:

"The Federal Government may not use a drone to kill a citizen of the United States who is located in the United States. The prohibition under this subsection shall not apply to an individual who poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to another individual. Nothing in this section shall be construed to suggest that the Constitution would otherwise allow the killing of a citizen of the United States in the United States without due process of law."

Read the entire bill below:

A Bill to Prohibit the Use of Drones to Kill Citizens of the United States Within the United States by Senator Ted Cruz

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