Supreme Court passes on oppportunity to check the Supreme President

This story "Supreme Court Won't Hear Padilla Detainee Case" should be a warning to everyone. If the Congress pisses its pants when a White House occupant tosses a U.S. citizen into a military brig despite Constitutional guarantees to a trial, don't count on the U.S. Supreme Court to act like an independent branch of government with the power to check and balance the Executive.

Justices Anthony M. Kennedy, John Paul Stevens, and John G. Roberts released an opinion on why they voted against hearing the Padilla case. The NPR Story says they said it was moot now that the government transferred him to a lower court to avoid the Supreme Court ruling on Bush's claim's of unlimited power. In other words they say "no foul" for Bush's despicable actions in calling a citizen arrested on U.S. soil an "enemy combatant" and holding him prisoner for 3 years without a trial. The three wingnut jobs on the court Scalia, Thomas, and Alito didn't issue an opinion but we can all imagine them making a rude gesture to our Constitutional protections, for example the 6th Amendment.

Amendment VI
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.

Three big cheers for Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David H. Souter, and Stephen G. Breyer who voted to take the case. Justice Ginsburg wrote a counter opinion and as quoted in the New York Times lays out the real threat of failing to check the Bush Administration run amok.

"Nothing the government has yet done purports to retract the assertion of executive power Padilla protests," Justice Ginsburg said, adding that "nothing prevents the executive from returning to the road it earlier constructed and defended." She said she was "satisfied that this case is not moot."

Padilla may be guilty. He may be a common criminal or a domestic terrorist. That's for a court to decide and Bush has tried to keep him from getting his day in court. He's a U.S. citizen and if they can do it to him they can do it to anyone of us.

Categories: government, civil, liberties