Kendall Coffey on the Boston Marathon Bombing suspect

GOP leaders are calling for the Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to be treated as an  “enemy combatant,” but the White House says Tsarnaev will be Kendall Coffey on MSNBC

Republican Rep. Peter King of New York and GOP Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, John McCain of Arizona, and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire believe it would help authorities gather intelligence.

"By declaring him an enemy combatant, there would be by virtue at least 30 days of unlimited interrogation,” King told MSNBC earlier in the day. King insists once the interrogation is over, Tsarnaev would be tried in a civilian court.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein argues that it would be unconstitutional to do so.

"I do not believe under the military commission law that he is eligible for that. It would be unconstitutional to do that," Feinstein said on "Fox News Sunday."

"Let me say this … one of the great things about America is that we come together at times of trial," said Feinstein. "I very much regret the fact that there are those that want to precipitate a debate over whether he's an enemy combatant or whether he is a terrorist, a murderer, et cetera."

Former U.S. attorney and MSNBC legal analyst Kendall Coffey on Twitter says he agrees with the White House’s decision. Kendall Coffey says you have to be part of an enemy force to be considered an enemy combatant.

“I don’t think being part of a general hatred of the United States is nearly enough…If we start throwing the Constitution out, we’re going to lose the real war for our values.”

"The Obama administration is trying to demonstrate civilian tools are adequate and tough enough to make everybody safe," Kendall Coffey stated, but that has included extending the public safety exception for Miranda rights. Mr. Coffey believes the administration is using this case to establish that “we don’t need to ship everyone down to Guantanamo.”

While liberals and constitutional scholars may not agree, Mr. Coffey said, “the administration may see it as something that’s needed to preserve civilian jury trials.”

Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University, called Graham’s rhetoric “alarming.” MSNBC’s Chris Matthews asked if he could be swayed by evidence in the future that may possibly show that Tsarnaev is linked to terrorist groups, Turley said “”No. He’s a U.S. citizen. He has presumption of innocence.”