"They're avoiding what the Supreme Court would say about American citizens. That's an issue the administration did not want to face," said Scott Silliman, a Duke University law professor who specializes in national security. "There's no way that the Supreme Court would have ducked this issue."

They charged him. Fine. Thats what I wanted.

However, by raising the specter of "I don't have to charge him" for so long, and then being unwilling to haul that claim before the court for analysis, the door is open. I'm not particularly worried about detentions today. I would have liked a precident that clarified that this was not legal today, so that it can be referenced when the day comes that I am concerned about the detentions. I won't have that. Those future inappropriate detentions will reference this episode, and they may do so in front of a court which is more sympathetic to executive power.

The administration has presented a platform for tyrants to stand on. I pray it doesn't have legs, but it will be a very long time before anyone knows the answer to that question.