Democrats seize on judges' ruling to expand Gitmo rights; Leahy: "White House not interested."

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT: Democrats Hope to Expand Rights at Guantánamo
By JEFF ZELENY
Published: June 6, 2007

WASHINGTON, June 5 — A day after two military judges ruled against the Bush administration’s system for trying terrorism detainees, Democrats seized on the rulings on Tuesday as evidence that Congress should restore the right of those held at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, to challenge their detentions.

Senator Harry Reid, the Nevada Democrat who is the majority leader, said he would be willing to bring such legislation to the floor. The Senate Judiciary Committee is preparing to approve such a plan on Thursday.

Senator Patrick J. Leahy, the Vermont Democrat who is chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said the rulings on Monday in two cases added urgency to the push to restore detainees’ right to file habeas corpus suits. Congress eliminated that right last year while redesigning the military tribunals after the Supreme Court struck down the first plan.

Mr. Leahy criticized the administration for insisting on an approach to the tribunals “which even conservative courts say no to.”

“It just shows what happens when they want to just rush something through arbitrarily without actually listening to the people who actually knew what they are talking about,” he said Tuesday in an interview. “After 9/11, a number of Republicans and Democrats talked to the White House and said we can put together legislation that can legitimately handle questions of military tribunals.

“The White House was not the least bit interested,” Mr. Leahy continued. “They made up their mind of how they were going to do it.”...

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/06/washington/06gitmo.html