The section in the statute doing away with habeas gives two necessary conditions for the denial of habeas corpus. One is that the prisoner be a non-citizen, and the second is that the non citizen be an enemy combatant.

Whatever moral dimension there might be to the statute, there is at least a decent legal argument to be made that the Constitution only applies to U.S. citizens.

And such an approach is sadly, in keeping with an ugly dimension of the Anglo-American tradition–concern with rights for the citizen, but disregard of the foreigner’s. Cf. Ireland, the sub-continent, much of Africa, etc. etc. etc.