Reference no: EM133302196

Case: The Patriot Act and the Military Commissions Act, both passed since the terrorist attacks of 2001, bestow incredible power on law enforcement agencies and the executive branch. The right of habeas corpus, the right to privacy, and the need for search warrants are eliminated as a consequence of these Acts. Historically, the right of habeas corpus has been suspended when the President has deemed it prudent to do so - first, Abraham Lincoln suspended habeas corpus in Maryland at the outset of the Civil War to prevent the capitol from being surrounded on all sides by dissenters, and later Franklin Delano Roosevelt suspended habeas corpus to inter Japanese-Americans after the attack on Pearl Harbor - but this is the first time this power has been extended, officially recognized, and codified into law. Hobbes believes it is the primary role of the government to insure safety, and therefore might approve of sacrificing liberties in the way the Patriot Act and the Military Commissions Act demand.

Question: What do you think? Is insuring safety the most important job of the government, or are should we safeguard liberty, as Rousseau suggests? Why do you take this position, and can you foresee any undesirable consequences of this position?