Habeas corpus does exist

Sacramento Bee: It's been part of the Anglo-American legal tradition since the Magna Carta in 1215. And the U.S. Constitution explicitly says that it cannot be suspended, except in the case of rebellion or invasion. Yet Attorney General Alberto Gonzales told the Senate Judiciary Committee last week that he believes people in the United States have no constitutional right to habeas corpus.
The writ of habeas corpus -- literally, "produce the body" -- has been a bulwark of personal liberty for more than 800 years. It requires that any time a person is detained, the government must produce the prisoner in person and state why he or she is being detained. A person taken into custody must either be charged or released.
But there was Gonzales, testifying before the Judiciary Committee that "there is no express grant of habeas in the Constitution; there is a prohibition against taking it away."
How can that be?
Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., was flabbergasted: "Now, wait a minute. Wait a minute. The Constitution says you can't take it away, except in the case of rebellion or invasion. Doesn't that mean you have a right of habeas corpus, unless there is an invasion or rebellion?"
Gonzales dug in: "I meant by that comment, the Constitution doesn't say, 'Every individual in the United States or every citizen is hereby granted or assured the right to habeas.' It doesn't say that."
Specter was justifiably appalled: "You may be treading on your interdiction and violating common sense, Mr. Attorney General."
Unfortunately, this was not merely a theoretical exchange. The Bush administration already has been detaining people without charge. For example, Jose Padilla, a U.S. citizen, was detained in 2002 at a Chicago airport and then held for 3 1/2 years without charges at a U.S. Navy brig in South Carolina.
The Bush administration forces us to learn anew the hallowed principles of our legal tradition -- and to defend them. Habeas corpus continues to be a basic human right worth fighting for -- to prevent a king or any government from arbitrarily throwing people into prison without charges.