The Bush administration keeps proving that it is insane

This is insane behavior by the U.S. government. It is also clear evidence that the Bush administration has abandoned the Rule of Law. The Rule of Law means that the government provides administrative certainty. In a given situation, the law is superior to the arbitrary decisions of administrators and the law states what actions the government can and will (or will not) take. It is extremely important for the government to be restricted and bound by law as well as individuals. That is an essential element of the rule of law.

Very clearly in this case Domenico Salerno was not provided administrative certainty. He had no warning and no reason to believe that he would be treated as he was by the immigration officials. But the government admits that they do not apply any law to certain people.

Each year, thousands of would-be visitors from 27 so-called visa waiver countries are turned away when they present their passports, said Angelica De Cima, a spokeswoman for Customs and Border Protection, who said she could not discuss any individual case. In the last seven months, 3,300 people have been rejected and more than 8 million admitted, she said.

Though citizens of those nations do not need visas to enter the United States for as long as 90 days, their admission is up to the discretion of border agents. There are more than 60 grounds for finding someone inadmissible, including a hunch that the person plans to work or immigrate, or evidence of an overstay, however brief, on an earlier visit.

While those turned away are generally sent home on the next flight, “there are occasional circumstances which require further detention to review their cases,” Ms. De Cima said. And because such “arriving aliens” are not considered to be in the United States at all, even if they are in custody, they have none of the legal rights that even illegal immigrants can claim.

Such arbitrary behavior by government officials is pure, unrestrained tyranny.

It is also characteristic of the Bush administration.