"What sense does it make to take the judge's word about what the law means over the word of the president?"

I've got an op-ed in Wednesday's NYT about ACLU v. NSA, activist judges, and irony.

ADDED: I like the illustration -- by David Suter (not David Souter) -- with the gavel-as-microphone image.

UPDATE: I can see that a lot of people are missing the point of the op-ed... But I don't want to get out my sledgehammer, and I'm bored with telling people to calm down and reread it.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Lot's of commentary here and elsewhere to keep up with, like this long thread at Volokh. Some other blogs are attacking me in a way that's too vicious to link to and engage with, so you'll have to just imagine what I'd say if chose to respond. I've got to expect to be attacked over this, even though it's mostly a basic civics lesson! Imagine what people would say if I'd actually said the government's interpretation of the Constitution and the statutes is correct (which I've never done, here or elsewhere).