As news of last night’s incident in Watertown, Massachusetts spread, police from all over the North East converged, once again, on Boston. Along with them were elements of the National Guard and U.S. military.

Though an official announcement has not been made, and likely will not be made, the entire Boston metropolitan area is now in complete lock-down in what can only be described as a de facto state of martial law.

By all accounts, law enforcement and military personnel have classified  Boston and surrounding towns a war-zone, especially after a gunfight yesterday evening that left one of the Boston Marathon Bombers dead and the other still at large. In a video of the early morning engagement, rapid gunfire and explosive detonations, believed to be more ‘pressure cooker’ bombs, can be heard as police and residents scrambled.

This has led to shelter-in-place orders being issued by officials, a widespread militarization of nearly a hundred square miles surrounding Boston, and deserted streets throughout the city.

Military personnel have reportedly been patrolling streets, performing door-to-door searches, and defusing or detonating suspected explosive devices.

Section 1031 of the controversial National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 effectively declares the United States a battlefield, suspends the U.S. Constitution and essentially allows the President, through the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. military, to deploy assets in this war zone as he sees fit:

Section 1031 of the NDAA bill, which itself defines the entirety of the United States as a “battlefield,” allows American citizens to be snatched from the streets, carted off to a foreign detention camp and held indefinitely without trial. The bill states that “any person who has committed a belligerent act” faces indefinite detention, but no trial or evidence has to be presented, the White House merely needs to make the accusation.

Paul said he saw significance in “the announcement and the arrogance of it all,” making reference to the Obama administration’s claim that it can now assassinate American citizens anywhere in the world and noting that the passage of the NDAA bill is an effort to codify the policy into law.

“This is a giant step – this should be the biggest news going right now – literally legalizing martial law,” said Paul, noting that the subject did not come up at all in any of the Republican debates.

Via Infowars

This is what America looks like under martial law:

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