You don't seem to get it. You think because the accusation was so large that it somehow transcends constitutionality. Whether he's accused of stealing a pack of gum, accused of terrorism against the US, as a US citizen he's supposed to have his day in court.
What don't you get about that? He isn't guilty until he's PROVEN guilty.
A very nice criminal justice / "legal" notion. And where that concept actually has relevance, I agree.
But in the context of what was absolutely and unequivocally known about al-Awlaki, we were not dealing with a criminal justice matter at all. So the legal notion of a presumption of innocence simply did not obtain.
You merely persist in conflating acts of war with mere criminality.
Was he killed on a battlefield shooting at troops? Was he killed in self defense of an imminent attack?
If those 2 things aren't present, then as a citizen he still retains due process rights regardless of war on terror. War on terror is just a created idea by our government that DOES NOT transcend the constitution. The only way your point is valid is if there is a constitutional amendment clearly laying out the details on this war on terror, and where due process is removed.
This isn't about Awlaki. I figure he probably was guilty of terrorism, but PROBABLY doesn't equal GUILTY. This is about the idea of due process itself, and the constitution. What's the point of constitutional protection if the government can just take it away from you whenever and however it sees fit, just because there's terrorism in the world? The government's main job is to PROTECT those rights. That's what this is about.
The proper procedure is to simply request extradition from Yemen and try him. If he was SOOOO guilty, then it should be a quick trial and the punishment would likely be death anyway.