Maybe a judge will hold Mukasey in contempt — for real

Judge Thomas Hogan told the Department of Justice to make Gitmo trials job No. 1:

“The time has come to move these forward. Set aside every other case that’s pending in the division and address this case first.”

Snark aside, Hogan even offered to help DOJ find countries of repatriation or expatriation for Guantanamo detainees.

Of course, there’s this little issue of the government not wanting to pay the detainees’ public defenders.

“Now the government is stonewalling again by not allowing Americans’ private dollars to be paid to American lawyers to defend civil liberties,” ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero said.

What if Hogan threatens to rule that detainees have no possibility of receiving a speedy trial, under the Sixth Amendment, if the Bush Administration keeps this up?