In reacting to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Hamdan v. Rumsfeld decision, President Bush said he thought “there is a way forward with military tribunals in working with the United States Congress.” How Congress and voters respond will determine a lot, Walter Shapiro argues:
“Significant as this ruling is, decisions like Hamdan do not by themselves instantly transform behavior as if they were a fiat from Mount Sinai. Their broader implications are bound to be tested in the courts and challenged by the administration. If Congress and the voters lack the political will to act on the Hamdan precedent, then Thursday’s decision will probably be remembered as a momentary flicker of judicial independence in the era of a ‘laws only apply to little people’ presidency.”
Posted by Melissa Cooley
Follow us
