This excerpt from Jack Goldsmith’s new book is fascinating. Among other things, it seems to explain why the Bush Administration always responded to the prospect of Supreme Court review of terrorism cases by tempering its previously hard line: the significant prospect of Supreme Court reversal in the near term was just about the only thing that would persuade David Addington to compromise, and David Addington’s view nearly always prevailed.
UPDATE: In case you haven’t had enough of Jack over the last few days, here’s a video interview of him by Dahlia Lithwick. It’s very much worth watching.