Law for Business 12th Edition by James Barnes,Terry Dworkin,Eric Richards

Exercise 1

Under the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA), the secretary of state is empowered to designate an entity as a "foreign terrorist organization," which results in blocking any funds that the organization has on deposit in the United States. The administrative process requires the secretary to compile an administrative record and based upon that record to make findings. However, at no point in the proceedings establishing the administrative record is the alleged terrorist organization afforded notice of the materials used against it, or a right to comment on such materials or the developing administrative record. Nothing in the statute forbids the use of third-hand accounts, press stories, materials on the Internet, or other hearsay regarding the organization's activities. In fact, the secretary may base the findings on classified material, to which the organization has no access at any point during or after the proceeding to designate it as terrorist. Is this statute constitutional? Explain.