Aside from the ongoing local debate about whether the United States was founded as a Christian nation or not, there is no question this country was based on the rule of law. It has provided a stable system unparalleled in human history.

But the current attempts by the Bush administration to recraft legal precedents and judicial procedures in its war on terrorism threaten to undermine fundamental liberties Americans have enjoyed for more than two centuries.

Opening statements are being heard today in the case against Salim Hamdan. It is the first war crimes trial the United States has conducted since the end of World War II.

Hamdan, a former farmhand and later personal driver for Osama bin Laden who has been detained and tortured since November 2001, is accused of helping the Taliban leader avoid U.S. efforts to capture him. According to the government, Hamdan also transported weapons for the terrorist organization.

The U.S. government might have difficulty proving its case. Monday, the judge ruled "confessions" made by the suspect while in isolation 24 hours a day with his hands and feet restrained and armed soldiers kneeing him in the back would not be allowed. The judge also rejected similar "confessions" made when he was repeatedly tied up, had a bag placed on his head and was knocked to the ground.

Suppressing this type of evidence is one of the few legally sound events to transpire as the government attempts to punish those it believes were responsible for the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. We don't anticipate many more such common-sense and justifiable rulings.

Even if there were, it wouldn't make much difference for Hamdan. If he's convicted, he faces life in prison. If he's acquitted, he would remain in detention until the government declares the war on terrorism over. And he's just one of the 200-plus "enemy combatants" currently held at Guantanamo Bay without formal charges who eventually will sit before a military tribunal.

As a federal court in Washington, D.C., decides whether these suspects actually will be allowed a chance to appeal any convictions to civilian courts, U.S. Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey is pressing Congress to help reshape the entire debate.

On Monday, Mukasey announced he is seeking:

* To bar federal courts from allowing the detainees to be brought or released into the United States.

* To protect counterterror intelligence gathered and used to detain the suspects from being turned over to courts.

* To prohibit detainees charged with war crimes from challenging their capture until after they stand trial.

In essence, the Justice Department leader is attempting to get legislators to approve what the judicial branch might not accept.

The laws of the United States are supposed to apply equally. Placing enemy combatants outside our rule of law -- and attempting to change the rules as the procedures take place -- ridicules what our founding fathers created.

Editorial by Patrick Lowry

plowry@dailynews.net