Rule of Law... so inconvenient...

Washington Post:

Intelligence Chiefs Back A Guantanamo Reversal

By Carol D. Leonnig

Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 12, 2007; Page A05

The Bush administration's top intelligence officials have all filed declarations to a federal appeals court -- including two classified top-secret -- warning that its recent ruling ordering the release of information about detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, will cause grave harm to national security.

The warnings of five officials, including the directors of the National Security Agency, the FBI and the CIA, were filed Friday by the Justice Department as it seeks a reversal of the court's July ruling. That decision allowed detainees' lawyers to have access to information about their clients as they challenge the detainees' imprisonment.

"The breadth of discovery apparently required by the Court's decision will include information about virtually every weapon in the CIA's arsenal to combat the terrorist threat to the United States," CIA Director Michael V. Hayden said in a public version of his statement asking the court to reconsider. He said "exceptionally grave damage can be expected to result" if the ruling stands.

NSA Director Keith B. Alexander, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England, Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell and FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III also submitted declarations to persuade the court. Hayden's and Alexander's declarations were classified as top-secret, while Mueller's was classified as secret.