Legal Commentary

Obama Considering Reviving Military Tribunals

By Jeralyn

I hope reinstating the military tribunals at Guantanamo is an idea the Obama Administration quickly discards, but I'm not optimistic:

The Obama administration is moving toward reviving the military commission system for prosecuting Guantánamo detainees...Officials said the first public moves could come as soon as next week, perhaps in filings to military judges at the United States naval base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, outlining an administration plan to amend the Bush administration’s system to provide more legal protections for terrorism suspects.

According to the article, Obama may revise and reinstate them for the top terror detainees.

Memo to President Obama: [More...]

There's no fixing those military tribunals. If your team can't come up with a solution other than one that reverts to one of the worst policies of Bush Adminstration, it's time to get a new team in place.

Suggestion: Start with the lawyers representing the Guantanamo detainees. They know exactly what's necessary for a fair trial. Suggestion two: Try them in federal court like you said you would. Show some backbone and stick to your campaign promises.

As a last resort, consider trials under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. But leave those military commission trials dead and buried where they belong.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on May 02, 2009 (boomark / email).