2006年VOA标准英语-US Supreme Court Rejects Military Tribunals for

By Jim Malone
Washington
29 June 2006

The U.S. Supreme¹ Court dealt the Bush administration a major legal setback² in connection with the war on terror Thursday. The high court ruled that President Bush had overstepped his authority in ordering military tribunals for terrorism suspects being held at the U.S. Naval³ base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

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US Supreme Court, Washington DC   
  
By a vote of 5-3, the Supreme Court ruled against the Bush administration's plan to use military tribunals to try terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay.

The majority opinion was written by Justice John Paul Stevens, who said the proposed military commissions were illegal under U.S. law and the Geneva Conventions.

In a dissenting⁴ opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the decision would sorely hamper⁵ the president's ability to confront and defeat a new and deadly enemy.

The legal challenge to the tribunals was brought to the high court by lawyers for Salim Ahmed Hamdan. Hamdan worked as a driver and bodyguard⁶ for Osama bin⁷ Laden⁸ and was to go on trial before a military tribunal on a charge of conspiracy⁹.

One of Hamdans lawyers, Professor Neal Katyal of Georgetown University Law School in Washington, spoke¹⁰ outside the Supreme Court.

"It is certainly the case that the president has pushed the bounds of executive authority more so than previous presidents and the ruling today sounds a cautionary note in that regard," he said.

 
Geroge Bush during a news conference at the White House, June 29, 2006 
  
There was quick reaction to the decision from President Bush as well during a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi at the White House.

"We will seriously look at the findings, obviously, and one thing I am not going to do, though, is that I am not going to jeopardize¹¹ the safety of the American people," he said. "I understand we are in a war on terror, that these people were picked up off a battlefield and I will protect the people and at the same time conform with the findings of the Supreme Court."

Thursday's Supreme Court decision dealt specifically with the issue of the military tribunals and did not address the question of the administration's right to hold the roughly 450 detainees now being held at Guantanamo or what should become of the detention¹² camp there.
  
 
US soldier in guard tower over looking military-run Camp Delta¹³ prison in Guantanamo Bay US Naval Base, June 27, 2006
  
But lawyers for the detainees and longtime critics of Guantanamo took heart from the high court's ruling.

"This is a real victory for the rule of law and a clear assertion of the Supreme Court's own continuing role to police the role of the president in carrying out the war on terror," said Deborah Pearlstein, who is with Human Rights Watch..

The detention camp at Guantanamo Bay has become the focus of international criticism and even President Bush said recently he would like to close it down if he could find a way to keep dangerous terrorists in custody¹⁴.

Thursday's decision was the second major Supreme Court ruling against the Bush administration's legal approach to those detained on the battlefield as part of the war on terror.

Two years ago, the high court rejected the president's claim to being able to hold terror suspects indefinitely without giving them access to lawyers and the U.S. civilian¹⁵ court system.

Legal analysts¹⁶ and members of Congress are already considering the impact of the Supreme Court ruling.

John Warner (file photo)  
  
Republican Senator John Warner of Virginia says some of the cases involving suspected terrorists at Guantanamo may wind up in the U.S. civilian court system.

"We might look to the federal [court] system and other means by which to provide that. But there also could be an acceleration¹⁷ of efforts to return them to their native countries, to the extent those countries will accept them," he said.

Only eight of the nine Supreme Court justices took part in Thursday's ruling.

Chief Justice John Roberts did not participate because he had ruled in favor of the Bush administration on the issue when he was a federal appeals court judge prior to his appointment to the Supreme Court

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

3 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

4 dissenting   

adj.不同意的

参考例句：

• He can't tolerate dissenting views. 他不能容纳不同意见。
• A dissenting opinion came from the aunt . 姑妈却提出不赞同的意见。

5 hamper   

vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子

参考例句：

• There are some apples in a picnic hamper.在野餐用的大篮子里有许多苹果。
• The emergence of such problems seriously hamper the development of enterprises.这些问题的出现严重阻碍了企业的发展。

6 bodyguard   

n.护卫，保镖

参考例句：

• She has to have an armed bodyguard wherever she goes.她不管到哪儿都得有带武器的保镖跟从。
• The big guy standing at his side may be his bodyguard.站在他身旁的那个大个子可能是他的保镖。

7 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

8 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

9 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

10 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

11 jeopardize   

vt.危及，损害

参考例句：

• Overworking can jeopardize your health.工作过量可能会危及你的健康。
• If you are rude to the boss it may jeopardize your chances of success.如果你对上司无礼，那就可能断送你成功的机会。

12 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

13 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

14 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

15 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

16 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

17 acceleration   

n.加速，加速度

参考例句：

• All spacemen must be able to bear acceleration.所有太空人都应能承受加速度。
• He has also called for an acceleration of political reforms.他同时呼吁加快政治改革的步伐。