(CNSNews.com) -- Senator Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) said that civilian courts would do a "far better" job of prosecuting terrorists than military courts, adding that the civilian venues would be more likely to bring top al Qaeda terrorists to justice. But Dodd did not directly answer whether 9/11 leader Osama bin Laden, if captured, should be read his Miranda rights.CNSNews.com asked: "If and when we catch Osama bin Laden, are we going to have to read him his Miranda rights?"
Dodd said: "We'll have far better prosecutions in our civilian courts than in our military courts. We're doing better there. I'm interested in seeing these people brought to justice and concluding their trials and getting convictions, and we've had far greater success in our federal court system than we have with our military courts."
Dodd added that while he was not against military tribunals, turning the issue into a political debate was "presumptuous" and people with a "political agenda" should not be weighing in on where terrorists are prosecuted.
"I'm not opposed to the military courts but having a bunch of congressmen and senators sitting around here deciding that they're going to be the attorney general and the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff and the secretary of defense is a little presumptuous," Dodd told CNSNews.com on Capitol Hill. "And giving them the decision-making process as to where this must be done frankly ought not to be decided by somebody who's got a political agenda. So I'm pretty confident they [the Obama administration] know what they're doing."
Dodd was referring to questions raised by Republicans in Congress, particularly Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) who questioned Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. on Nov. 18 about how the administration would treat terrorists caught in the future, now that they apparently will be sent to federal court to stand trial. (Holder had announced on Nov. 13 that five being held for their role in the 9/11 attacks would be tried in a federal court and not a military tribunal.)
