[lbo-talk] US govt surveillance protected by Catch 22

Doug Henwood dhenwood at panix.com
Sat Jul 7 11:09:26 PDT 2007


The judges might have liked this standing excuse just fine. From the NYT's account:


> Cass R. Sunstein, a law professor at the University of Chicago,
> said courts often relied on doctrines like standing “to avoid
> entering into politically hot controversies.”
>
> “This, for at least two of the judges, was a very sensitive,
> substantive issue,” Professor Sunstein added, referring to the
> legality of the N.S.A. program, “which, once they get into it, is
> an uphill fight for the government.”

I guess this means the gov had a weak case on the merits, but the judiciary doesn't want to challenge executive power on "national security," so they punted. No wonder the bourgeoisie loves the courts.

Doug



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