The United States is winding down the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and proceeds apace in crippling the al-Qaida terrorist organization. It is time for Congress also to consider winding down extraordinary wartime powers enacted since 2001.

Yet Congress is poised to do the opposite, expanding powers in a never-ending "war on terror."

Buried in the 680-page Senate version of the annual National Defense Authorization Act are two provisions that expand the president's detention powers and rigidly throw certain individuals suspected of involvement in terrorism into military custody. The House and Senate are reconciling differing versions and expect to vote on a final bill next week.

These provisions undermine basic U.S. liberties and our capability to respond flexibly in dealing with suspected terrorists. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who supports this expansion, has said it would "basically say in law for the first time that the homeland is part of the battlefield" and people can be imprisoned without charge or trial, "American citizen or not."

Americans should contact their members of Congress to strip these outrageous provisions from the final bill.

Section 1031 would authorize detention of U.S. citizens arrested in the United States, without charge or trial, until "the end of the hostilities." How long will that be? "Indefinitely," says California's Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who led the charge opposing these provisions in the Senate.

Section 1032 would require the military to handle cases of certain suspected terrorists, even on U.S. soil – though we have a robust civilian justice system for trying and punishing people for crimes on U.S. soil.

This is not a party-line issue. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has spoken eloquently against the measures: "We are talking about people who are merely suspected of terrorism or suspected of committing a crime and have been judged by no court. We are talking about American citizens who could be taken from the United States and sent to a camp at Guantánamo Bay and held indefinitely."

In the House, Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove, also opposes the provisions. Through his press secretary, he told The Bee's editorial board that they "jeopardize the fundamental constitutional rights of every American by allowing the government to deny due process protections to any person that it declares is 'associated' with 'al-Qaida, the Taliban or associated forces.' "

In the Obama administration, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, CIA Director David Petraeus, FBI Director Robert Mueller, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and White House Adviser for Counterterrorism John Brennan have been outspoken against both provisions.

The National Defense Authorization Act is not a spending bill and the separate defense appropriations bill does not have these provisions. The president can veto this bill without impacting funds for troops in the field – as President Ronald Reagan did in 1988 and George W. Bush did in 2007.

If Congress does not strip the offending provisions, President Barack Obama should carry out his threat to veto the National Defense Authorization Act.

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