. >> fdr consulted with his attorney general, francis biddle, and issued an executive order. >> thathese saboteurs would be tried not in civilian courts, not by a regularly constituted court-martial and not even in accordance with the articles of war, which governed the procedure for trials of criminal cases in the military, but by a special military tribunal that he convened. >> those eight saboteurs who landed secretly in florida and on long island, put ashore by u-boats, they came to do criminal work against this nation, two are american citizens, traitors, now they go to face military justice. >> the united states had been at war with germany since december of 1941. there was great apprehension in the united states and there was a great deal of concern as to the ability of the united states to combat saboteurs and ultimately to defeat the axis powers. >> fdr decided there should be a secret trial and execution. he made that decision almost the first second he heard about the landing of nazi saboteurs, so it was, a, nazis have landed. b, they're going to die. there was a fantastic