I'm pleased to report the NY Times Editorial Board has been
following this thread on the Cellar, and agrees with me on this issue.
Editorial
Justifying the Killing of an American
Published: October 11, 2011
Quote:
The Obama administration apparently spent months considering
the legal implications of targeting Anwar al-Awlaki,
the American citizen who was killed in Yemen last month
after being accused of being a terrorist organizer.
It prepared a detailed and cautious memorandum to justify the decision—
a refreshing change from the reckless legal thinking of the Bush administration,
which rationalized torture, claimed unlimited presidential powers and
drove the country’s fight against terrorists off the rails.
But the memo, as reported by Charlie Savage in The Times,
is an insufficient foundation for a momentous decision
by the government to kill one of its own citizens,
no matter how dangerous a threat he was believed to be.
For one thing, the administration has refused to make it public
or even acknowledge its existence.
It was described to Mr. Savage by anonymous officials,
and the administration will not openly discuss even its most basic guidelines
for choosing assassination targets.
The decision to kill Mr. Awlaki was made entirely within the executive branch.
The memo was not shared with Congress, nor did any independent judge or panel of judges pass judgment.
The administration set aside Mr. Awlaki’s rights to due process.
<snip>
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Sec. Panetta needs to pay attention too.