Assassination of Americans by Americans for Americans

Glenn Greenwald has a looooong post over at Salon.com today discussing recent disclosures that the U.S. intelligence community has been targeting American citizens for assassination. In the ongoing War on Terror (there's a new, less menacing term for our crusade, but I don't remember what it is) the Executive has commandeered the prerogative to designate certain American citizens as terrorists, making them fair game in the assassination campaign. Obviously there are serious questions about the legality of this program, as it essentially deprives American citizens of scads of Constitutionally-guaranteed protections. Equally troubling is the absence of oversight. According to government officials, before an American citizen can be deemed fair game for assassination, special permission must be granted. Swell, right? Not exactly. That special permission comes from within the Executive branch of government, either from the president or from someone working for the president. Keep in mind that the entire program was designed and has been executed by the Executive. So, to recap, before engaging in the assassination of American citizens (deemed terrorists, as defined by the Executive), the Executive must get special permission from the Executive. Sounds like a flawless system.