Who stole the US Constitution?

Anti-war protestors have one more consideration this weekend in Washington:

If the executive branch has the power to designate an American citizen an "enemy combatant," and lock him up for "the duration," then it is under no obligation to demonstrate the guilt of that detainee. The suspect may simply languish in jail for years without ever having the opportunity to prove his innocence.

Moreover, if a former street thug can be so designated, then who else might qualify? A critical journalist? An anti-war protester? An activist who backed the "wrong" cause? A tourist who talked to the wrong person while traveling abroad?

That is a frightful power to grant any president. And if the appellate court's ruling stands, it means that an important guarantee embedded in the United States Constitution is no longer worth the paper it is printed on.

Hopefully, this chilling ruling will be overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The bad news is that the author of the opinion, Judge Michael Luttig, is said to be under consideration by President Bush to fill a Supreme Court vacancy.

Read the Ledger editorial at Chilling Decision On Imprisonment