Sununu one of 7 Republicans who voted in favor of expanding detainee rights

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The Senate has narrowly rejected legislation that would have given military detainees the right to protest their detention in federal court.

Among the 56 senators voting in favor of expanding detainees’ rights were six Republicans, including John Sununu of New Hampshire.

But the 56-to-43 vote fell four shy of the 60 votes needed to cut off debate on the bill, co-sponsored by Senators Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania. It was a blow for human rights groups that say a current ban on habeas corpus petitions could lead to the indefinite detention of individuals wrongfully suspected of terrorism.

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