It has come to the attention of some people that the administration has or is implementing a policy whereby the administration can use drones for targeted killings, which in some cases includes the legal justification for killing U.S. citizens without trial.

There is a time and place for secrecy and national security, but beyond this, one must be careful. To eliminate a U.S. citizen or group of U.S. people without trial is difficult to justify under our Constitution. If the Constitution is to be ignored and elimination can be justified by the decision of one person or a small group, then there is a glaring similarity to what happened in the 1930s to individuals or groups who were declared "enemies of the state" and no one questioned or argued.

As far as the government's concern about giving away information on national security, the government has given away more security information in the last four years than over the last 20 years. Maybe the government does not care.

Lew Hiatt

Belleville