Political Extremism

Glenn Greenwald, a first amendment lawyer turned blogger, turned daily columnist and commentator for Salon.com reports today on the authoritarian strain in the Republican Party. At a recent Club for Growth meeting candidate Mitt Romney was asked if he “...believed the president should have the authority to arrest U.S. citizens with no review. Romney said he would want to hear the pros and cons from smart lawyers before he made up his mind.” The same questioner had reported he asked Giuliani the same question a few weeks ago and “...the mayor said that he would want to use this authority infrequently.”
Here are two of the leading contenders for the Republican nomination for president who are willing, as Greenwald points out, to “...either embrace or are open to embracing the idea that the President can imprison Americans without any review, based solely on the unchecked decree of the President.”
This seems to me to be an excellent campaign issue and question for reporters to ask candidates: “Do you believe an American President has the authority to imprison American citizens without judicial review?”