It was a very, very close call, but the rule of law ruled the day: a provision of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 that stripped Federal courts of their jurisdiction to hear habeas corpus petitions from detainees who've been imprisoned in Guantanamo for as long as six years was, according to the Supreme Court, unconstitutional. Meaning, prisoners who have until now been held without charge, denied counsel--indeed, denied due process--can challenge their detention in America's courts. Keith Olbermann discusses the landmark ruling; Constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley (my hero) weighs in.
The money quote (well, one of them):
Turley: "I think what we really gained here is credibility--that is, we show the world that having an idiot-proof system doesn't mean you don't have idiots; it means you can transcend them."
(Read the transcript of Thursday's Countdown here.)
Also at Cogitamus.
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