Guantanamo Detainees Get Habeas Corpus; Bush Says Trials Will Continue

The Supreme Court again repudiated Bush's Guantanamo policies on Thursday. In a contentious decision, the Supreme Court ruled that detainees at Guantanamo can appeal their imprisonment, and allowed them the right of habeas corpus.

The momentous decision represents a step back toward moral high ground lost when the American government flaunted the Geneva Conventions in its search for terrorists. It could send a belated message to our president that he too, is subject to the law, and that even claiming to protect Americans from the specter of terrorism does not place him above it. Naturally, Bush administration officials quickly made their displeasure known.

While the Supreme Court's decision will allow detainees to challenge their imprisonment, the Bush administration has already indicated that trials will continue. The White House is already trying to decide whether to respond with new legislation, as it has done in the past to neutralize previous rulings against its treatment of foreign detainees at Guantanamo.