More Americans to be Killed

The Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling last week means that terrorism detainees captured overseas have the same rights as U.S. citizens facing shoplifting trials at home. This unprecedented expansion of habeas was not a victory over the President. It was a judicial nullification of procedures carefully crafted by both elected branches of Government of procedures carefully tailored to allow review of detentions while remaining mindful of the terrorist threat.

The smallest of majorities is disregarding judicial history and pretending we live in a world where captured deadly enemies can be granted an advantage, without it affecting the likelihood of victory. The Court invalidated the law because it found:

"…no credible arguments that the military mission would be compromised if habeas courts had jurisdiction to hear detainees' claims."

It is difficult to fault Scalia's riposte:

"What competence does the Court have to second-guess the judgment of Congress and President on such a point?"

Scalia detailed how prisoners released from Guantanamo had returned to murder Americans and our allies. Scalia is foreseeably correct in concluding that the decision"will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed."

The Court is basing its decision -- disregarding two centuries of decisions holding that habeas is unavailable to aliens captured abroad -- on the fact that Gitmo is "functionally" under U.S. control. But so are U.S. bases in Afghanistan and Iraq... [snip]

If you do not comprehend that the ACLU and its fellow revelers are preparing petitions in blank -- on behalf of every terrorist captured overseas -- to compel the Government immediately to disclose its evidence, then you understand nothing.

Chief Justice Roberts pointed out in his dissent what the Court is opening the door to:

"free access to classified information ignores the risk the prisoner may convey what he learns to parties hostile to this country, with deadly consequences for those who helped apprehend the detainee."

Roberts noted that our troops are not equipped to handle subpoenas on the battlefield. Information given to defense lawyers in the first World Trade Towers trial on a restricted basis quickly appeared on al-Jazeera... [snip]

"If the Court does not temper its doctrinaire logic with a little practical wisdom, it will convert the Bill of Rights into a suicide pact."

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