That's correct folks. Here's the story from WaPo:
A Muslim cleric tied to the attempted bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner has become the first U.S. citizen added to a list of suspected terrorists the CIA is authorized to kill, a U.S. official said Tuesday.
Anwar al-Aulaqi, who resides in Yemen, was previously placed on a target list maintained by the U.S. military's Joint Special Operations Command and has survived at least one strike carried out by Yemeni forces with U.S. assistance against a gathering of suspected al-Qaeda operatives.
Because he is a U.S. citizen, adding Aulaqi to the CIA list required special approval from the White House, officials said. The move means that Aulaqi would be considered a legitimate target not only for a military strike carried out by U.S. and Yemeni forces, but also for lethal CIA operations.
In other words, the president has authorized the CIA to just kill this guy whether or not he's actively engaged in hostilities against American forces. The ironic thing? Even John Yoo didn't go so far as to say the president could order the assasination of an American citizen without due process. It's something the Bush administration didn't even do as far as I know.
Money line? It's a list of suspected terrorists the CIA may assassinate.
Make of it what you will, folks.
UPDATE:
Quickly browsing the comments show what appears to be a minority disturbed by this. I'll reproduce my comment below for general consumption:
So let me get this straight (3+ / 0-)
Recommended by:itsbenj, Richard Lyon, J M F
Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the admitted mastermind behind the murder of 3000 Americans, gets a trial in federal court and due process even though it's "been determined" that he's a terrorist, and not even a U.S. citizen, but we don't have to bother capturing a U.S. citizen who's probably guilty of a much lesser crime? We can just assassinate him?
Never thought I'd see the day that the Kossacks out-Yoo-ed Yoo and out Cheney-ed Cheney. I'm sure you'd all be just as understanding had this story broke in April 2008 and it was the Bush administration that gave the order.