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The Prime Minister of Canada v. Omar Khadr

Our Michael Friscolanti previews Friday morning’s Supreme Court hearing.

“All it takes is a phone call—a call between the prime minister and the president,” says Dennis Edney, Khadr’s ever-relentless lawyer. “I’m told that the Americans don’t have any concerns about sending Omar back to Canada. All the pressure is coming from Stephen Harper.”

… If the judges side against Ottawa, Stephen Harper will have no choice but to ask the Americans to return Khadr. Such a request won’t guarantee his release—the U.S. is under no obligation to agree—but it will certainly alter the playing field. “If we are successful, then Obama has something to hang his hat on,” Edney says. “And Harper just washes his hands. He can say: ‘I’ll ask—I can’t tell you how nicely I’m going to ask—but I’ll ask.’”

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