Never mind the 'First Pooch', Obama's done a Cheney!

Our friends over at Human Rights Now, the Amnesty USA blog, are reporting a worrying resort by President Obama to the unaccountable, limitless Executive power so beloved by his predecessor in the White House.

"Last Friday, the Obama administration turned to the “dark-side” yet again, and appealed a district court ruling that would give detainees in Afghanistan a chance to challenge their detention before a judge.

"The Justice Department also went on to ask the judge to halt proceedings on three other habeas corpus cases."

What had Obama to say about all this messing about with the rule of law when he was still on the campaign trail? Wasn't there something about 'false choices' in that soaring rhetoric of last year…?

Oh, yes, back then, Presidential candidate Obama committed himself to:

"rejecting a false choice between fighting terrorism and respecting habeas corpus. Our courts have employed habeas corpus with rigor and fairness for more than two centuries, and we must continue to do so as we defend the freedom that violent extremists seek to destroy."

Looks like, now that he is in power, Obama doesn't think that choice is false after all. Bad decision, Mr President, bad decision.