Bush facing Gitmo bill

The Bush administration is in for more political embarrassment this week, as Congress considers whether to reform Guantanamo detainee trial procedures under special Military Commissions.  The Democratic chairman and ranking Republican member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy and Arlen Specter, have introduced a 'Habeas Corpus Restoration Bill' designed to allow detainees to appeal their status in US civilian federal courts. 

After Leahy and Specter rammed the legislation through committee, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid promised to bring the bill before the full Senate by the end of June.  It will almost certainly fail to pass -- either due to a Republican filibuster or presidential veto -- as the latest (March 2007) Gallup survey data indicates that a majority of US voters favour keeping the Guantanamo detention facility open. 

Nevertheless, the administration's inability to create a credible judicial process at Guantanamo, highlighted by the dismissal on June 4 of charges against two detainees by military judges, has contributed to an erosion of public confidence in President George Bush's 'war on terror' policies.  The growing domestic perception that Guantanamo has been maladroitly administered, rather than human rights concerns, may ultimately doom the facility.