MSNBC host Ed Schultz sharply criticized the Obama administration's extensive use of drone strikes on "The Ed Show" Tuesday night, after a confidential Justice Department memo was released that shed new light on how and why they are implemented. The memo states the U.S. government can order the killing of American citizens if they are believed to be "senior operational leaders" of al-Qaida or "an associated force," even if there is no intelligence indicating they are actively plotting against the U.S.
Schultz sternly declared, "This is President Obama's legacy right now. It is dangerous."
ED SCHULTZ: I have to say, as an American citizen, we are all entitled to due process under the law. And this document gives the president the ability to act as judge, jury and executioner. I'm troubled by it. It doesn't meet the moral or the constitutional standard that we expect of any administration, and I have to say that liberals have come certainly a long way to crying about the FISA court and the Patriot Act and listening in on conversations to literally taking out innocent people around the world. We're losing the moral high ground by doing this, and even more troubling, there are people in Washington who are ominously silent and not questioning this process and willing to stand behind the legal opinion of the Justice Department. This is President Obama's legacy right now. It is dangerous.
Full panel discussion: