Section 1021 of the act purports to codify an expansive view of the authority of the government to indefinitely detain under military custody anyone "who has committed a belligerent act" against the United States. The White House and its allies were able to neuter its potential impact upon U.S. citizens captured on U.S. soil before the passage of the measure. And the law itself concedes that it does not "limit or expand the authority of the President or the scope of the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force," the grandaddy of detainee laws at play here.

But the president nonetheless used the signing statement to:

clarify that my Administration will not authorize the military detention without trial of American citizens. Indeed, I believe that doing so would break with our most important traditions and values as a Nation. My Administration will interpret Section 1021 in a manner that ensures that any detention it authorizes complies with the Constitution, the laws of war, and all other applicable law.



Interesting, isn't it, that both the executive and legislative branches felt compelled here to explicitly reassure Americans that they cannot be given indefinite military detention if they become terror suspects? This has everything to do with the language of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's 5-4 majority opinion in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, the 2004 Supreme Court decision which held that the due process clause of the Constitution prohibited the government from indefinitely detaining a U.S. citizen under military custody.* (See Clarification below). The signing statement, like the language of Section 1021 itself, are designed to help shape the legacy of Hamdi the next time the matter comes before the justices. And there will be a next time.

Section 1022 of the act purports to require the presumption of military custody for any non-citizen terror suspects -- a presumption that would arguably deprive the Justice Department of the ability and the right to prosecute terror suspects in federal civilian courts. This is the center of gravity of the signing statement; it is here where the president, the constitutional law scholar, wants to make sure everyone knows that he doesn't agree with the premise of Section 1022 -- or with the power of Congress to authorize it. From the statement:

I reject any approach that would mandate military custody where law enforcement provides the best method of incapacitating a terrorist threat. While Section 1022 is unnecessary and has the potential to create uncertainty, I have signed the bill because I believe that this section can be interpreted and applied in a manner that avoids undue harm to our current operation...



... As my Administration has made clear, the only responsible way to combat the threat of al-Qa-ida poses is to remain relentlessly practical, guided by the factual and legal complexities of each case and the relative strengths and weaknesses of each system. Otherwise, investigations could be jeopardized, our authorities (sic?) to hold dangerous individuals could be jeopardized, and intelligence could be lost.



Relentlessly practical. In other words, if the executive branch captures a non-citizen terror suspect tomorrow, and the Feds feel it makes more sense to let the FBI and the Justice Department deal with the suspect, that is what is going to happen regardless of the language of Section 1022. Remember, it wasn't just the Justice Department that objected to the language of Section 1022. The Pentagon did, too. And if those two parts of the executive branch agree on protocol for a particular terror suspect who exactly would be left to complain about Section 1022? The terror suspect? Only if he wants to fight for the right to remain in indefinite military custody.