anti-terror laws vs due process

The 'Philadelphia Inquirer' has this editorial today on the Jose Padilla ruling

Upholding American principles Every American should welcome a federal judge's sure-footed ruling in South Carolina this week that the Bush administration cannot jail a U.S. citizen indefinitely without criminal charges. It is yet another rebuke of the Bush team's draconian overreaching with its anti-terror measures. For citizens, it's a victory on behalf of key constitutional protections that safeguard their fundamental freedoms. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court established the important principle that the courts must provide oversight of the government's war-on-terror tactics. Most critically, the courts need to review President Bush's designation of suspects as enemy combatants with few traditional legal rights. Now, U.S. District Court Judge Henry F. Floyd puts that concept to the test, with his decision Monday that suspected al-Qaeda foot soldier Jose Padilla has to be charged, or freed within 45 days. From the start of Padilla's nearly three-year incarceration in a military brig in Charleston, S.C., it has never been clear why authorities didn't charge him. They contend Padilla scouted sites for a radioactive 'dirty bomb' attack. If there's evidence, Padilla should be charged in federal court at once. If he turns out to be guilty, lock him up and throw away the key. As it is, he remains incarcerated as the government appeals Floyd's decision. This ruling isn't about sympathy for a possible terrorist. It's about the core American principle that government power must be subject to the rule of law; not even a president should be able to deprive an American citizen of his freedom unilaterally, indefinitely and without showing cause. As Floyd wrote: 'If such a position were ever adopted by the courts, it would totally eviscerate the limits placed on Presidential authority to protect the citizenry's individual liberties.' Floyd, by the way, was a 2003 Bush appointee to the bench. His ruling is about American principles, not partisan politics.