Habeas and the Guantanomo Bay Prisoner Cases

Thanks to Scotusblog, at this link is a Supreme Court Order issued today remanding the case of four Britons released from Guantanomo, who then sued United States Military officials for misconduct in the treatment, allegedly torture. That means the opinion of the DC Circuit Court must be reconsidered in light of the Supreme Court Opinion in the case of Boumedienne, issued more recently this year. The opinion to be reconsidered was issued January 11, 2008 and is available at this link. If I can find it I'll post a link to the Boumedienne case as well.

Secretly Shrinking National Security

Concerns over the lingering Gitmo cases expressed by Judge Leon as reported by AP, here.

Excerpt,

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A federal judge overseeing cases against dozens of Guantanamo Bay detainees said Wednesday that he fears the public - and the detainees themselves - will be locked out of the courtroom when evidence in the case is scrutinized for the first time.

Hundreds of detainees are awaiting hearings in a Washington federal court in the coming months to determine whether they were properly labeled enemy combatants and imprisoned without being charged.

U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon, who has said he wants to resolve the 24 cases assigned to him before the next president is sworn in, urged President Bush's administration to find a way for at least part of those cases to be held in public.

"If it can't be done, I have great concern that these hearings will be virtually or exclusively classified, closed to the public and, I might add, to the detainees," Leon said.

Ready to Rumble?

Here, is the headline of the day (Discourse dot net on tip from Progressive Law Blog aka Prolawblogs). A Demonstration, Miami for Peace is sponsoring this action with Global Exchange, CODEPINK Women for Peace, United for Peace and Justice, the Bill of Rights Defense Committee, Veterans for Peace South Florida, Miami Chapter of Amnesty International and many others.

This is a close second, S. 223. A bill to require Senate candidates to file designations, statements, and reports in electronic form; to the Committee on Rules and Administration (from Votelaw, which I will be adding to the "roll" here or on the Poliblog).

Additional Curiosities Related to "Criminal Politics":

"Sexual politics" means a lot of things in Washington, even how men and women relate to each other, defining notions about femininity and masculinity. For better or for worse, as in the marriage vows. In Washington "sexual politics" is usually more about power than sex. The Republicans are the Daddy Party, the Democrats the Mommy Party. But the stereotypes are changing right before our eyes, and smart pols will take due notice now because public expectations and psychological perceptions will shape their future. Suzanne Fields/
WashingtonTimes

Not Ship-Shape at State, Sherlock (WPost)

Lefty v Righty Churches: Do Donors Affect or Reflect the Flock's Thinking? (WPost)

UPDATE: I have been struggling for a label for these trendy, newsy, dailies that I post, having previously tried "currents" "trends" and variations thereof. NOW I HAVE IT. Henceforth, these will be THE CROW'S NEST. Apologies but I could not resist a reference here to "running point" which is something I've been asked to do and Army (and football) guys should appreciate. Contrast this with "on point" which the big legal guns know all about.