Supporting Secret Arrests

A federal appeals court ruled today that the Justice Department does not have to reveal the names of hundreds of post-Sept. 11 detainees. The ruling explicitly deferred to the wisdom of the White House.

"America faces an enemy just as real as its former Cold War foes, with capabilities beyond the capacity of the judiciary to explore," wrote U.S. Circuit Judge David B. Sentelle. He said judges are "in an extremely poor position to second-guess the executive's judgment in this area of national security."

If not the judicial branch, or (heaven forbid) the public, then who is in a good position to monitor the feds?