In a familiar 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court decided that so-called ‘enemy combatants’ do have the right to habeas corpus in trials in the U.S. like every other civilian. The decision split on ideological lines with the liberal and moderate justices in the majority. The arch-conservative bloc voted against.
“The Bush administration has urged the high court not to get involved in the broader appeals, saying the federal judiciary has no authority to hear such matters. Four justices agreed. In a sharp dissent, read in part from the bench, Justice Antonin Scalia said the majority “warps our Constitution.” The “nation will live to regret what the court has done today,” Scalia said. He was supported by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.”
-CNN, 11 Jun 2008
This decision puts in focus what is at stake in the upcoming U.S. presidential election. The older and more moderate justices want to retire and desperately need to be replaced by a moderate justice on the Supreme Court who will NOT legislate from the bench like Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. If John McCain wins in November, America will be a very different place for at least a generation as the younger conservatives look Likely to remain on the court for another 20 to 30 years each.
From where I sit, another Scalia would be disastrous for American jurisprudence.
Update: Related Articles – The check to U.S. executive power hangs in the balance, Michael Tomasky, The Guardian, 14 Jun 2008
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