by Michael Kuykendall [courtesy of Blog for America]

Over the weekend US legal authorities forwarded an argument in a British case that the United States can legally abduct anyone in the world.

In a case in the United Kingdom this weekend the United States officially asserted its right to legally detain and abduct citizens of any nation. From the Times Online (h/t Mefi);

AMERICA has told Britain that it can “kidnap” British citizens if they are wanted for crimes in the United States.

A senior lawyer for the American government has told the Court of Appeal in London that kidnapping foreign citizens is permissible under American law because the US Supreme Court has sanctioned it.

[...]

Until now it was commonly assumed that US law permitted kidnapping only in the “extraordinary rendition” of terrorist suspects.

The American government has for the first time made it clear in a British court that the law applies to anyone, British or otherwise, suspected of a crime by Washington.

Legal experts confirmed this weekend that America viewed extradition as just one way of getting foreign suspects back to face trial. Rendition, or kidnapping, dates back to 19th-century bounty hunting and Washington believes it is still legitimate.

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[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Frank D. Russo

It's a bizarre way to do business, but the guy likes grand gestures and a bit of melodrama. Not that we haven't had it already this week with the ramping up of the final week and a half of the "end of session" for the year.

Now this from Governor Schwarzenegger's office:

"Governor Schwarzenegger issued the following statement today after he canceled a planned trip to the United Kingdom to speak at the Conservatives party conference in September and postponed a trade mission to India that had been planned for later in the fall:

"David Cameron is an outstanding leader and I was very disappointed in not being able to attend the Conservatives conference next month. I look forward to participating in the conference live via satellite and will continue to work with David on combating climate change. Additionally, I have postponed my trade mission to India. California reaps tremendous benefits from these trade missions and we will work to reschedule that trip as soon as possible.

"While I am confident that we will be able to accomplish quite a bit before the end of the legislative session, I need to maintain the flexibility to call a special session. With only two weeks left, we need to finish the work we have begun on health care, a comprehensive water plan and redistricting reform."