Mitt Romney earned his first jeers of Monday night's debate in saying that he would support language in the latest defense authorization bill that would allow the president to indefinitely detain enemy combatants - including American citizens - captured on American soil, drawing criticism from civil libertarians in the office.
"Yes, I would have [signed the bill], and I do believe that it's appropriate to have in our nation the capacity to detain people who are threats to this country and who are members of al-Qaeda," Romney said over boos from the crowd.
"You have every right in this country to protest and to express your views on a wide range of issues, but you don't have the right to join a group that has challenged America and has threatened killing Americans, has killed Americans and has declared war against America - that's treason," Romney said.
Acknowledging that some in the crowd worried that the bill gave the president too much power, Romney insisted that voters should choose someone with enough character to use the powers of the presidency appropriately.
"I recognize that in a setting with enemy combatants on our own soil that could be abused," Romney said.
But the governor said he did not believe he or President Obama would abuse that power.
"I don't think he's going to abuse this power and if i know that if I were president I know that I would not abuse this power," Romney continued, again to jeers. "People who join al-Qaeda are not entitled to due process."
Later in the debate, Rick Santorum and Ron Paul said they supported a law under which American citizens detained for suspected ties to terrorism would be entitled to due process, earning them cheers from the crowd.
