if within a practicing clandestine intelligence unit the case officers believe that their superiors will not protect the identity of their sources or their own identity, in fact, in doing things which are dangerous and difficult, then a, kind of, circle of doubt begins to spread, like throwing a rock into the water.
The White House spin and smear operation which followed the unmasking of Plame of necessity targeted her covert status. With its allies in right-wing radio and television, doubt was cast in the public mind over whether Plame was truly covert or not. They had no choice. Were the public to understand what had just happened, at the street level and beyond the confines of the well-informed, calls for impeachment would have seemed mild. Juvenile arguments were made that Plame had an office at CIA headquarters and could be seen walking in and out of the building. This neglects that any Al Qaeda dumb enough to lay in the grass outside the main gate of the vast parking lot in Langley with binoculars, would be in short order staring down the barrels of M-16s wielded by a K-9 unit.
The irony is that Bush built his career on protecting us from WMD, and that is exactly what he exposed us to when he betrayed Plame. Treason.
Lying Under Oath: The Oath of Office
Bush swore before a joint session of Congress:
"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." -Presidential Oath of Office.
I assume this oath has the force of law, and is not purely ceremonial. When Bush claimed the wartime powers of the past, by which the president can deprive citizens of constitutional rights, and then said the war on terror is "a task that does not end," he set out to overthrow the constitutional rights of citizens, a violation of his oath to uphold the Constitution. If we apply his own arguments, that Al Qaeda and bin Laden are determined to take away our freedoms, then by doing so himself he has given the "aid and comfort" to the enemy required in Article 3 to fit the definition of treason.
A president may claim wartime powers in a traditional war, as previous presidents have, and know that at some point the war will be over, that people will see someone surrendering on a ship and signing a document, or see an army annihilated like Hitler's which clearly means the war is over. Now give me back my rights. Or a president can recognize that a war lasts "forever" and not claim wartime powers. But to do both, claim wartime powers and declare that the war has no end, is the very definition of tyranny which seeks to make our rights under the Constitution meaningless.
I am the first to admit that this is a novel legal argument, but no president in history has ever made such audacious and novel claims to power. A novel attack requires a novel defense. Further evidence that the intent of the Founders was to never have the military deployed against its own citizens is the prohibition against "standing armies."
Evidence:
War that does not end:
"And I will carry this: It is the police shield of a man named George Howard, who died at the World Trade Center trying to save others. It was given to me by his mom, Arlene, as a proud memorial to her son. This is my reminder of lives that ended, and a task that does not end." " -GWB,Address to a Joint Session of Congress, Sept. 20, 2001
Bill of Rights:
"In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence." -Sixth Amendment of the US Constitution, the "Bill of Rights"
Claim of wartime power to declare American citizens "enemy combatant," overriding the Bill of Rights:
--"I, GEORGE W. BUSH, as President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the U.S. armed forces, hereby DETERMINE for the United States of America that...Jose Padilla, who is under the control of the Department of Justice and who is a U.S. citizen, is, and at the time he entered the United States in May 2002 was, an enemy combatant...Accordingly, you are directed to receive Mr. Padilla from the Department of Justice and to detain him as an enemy combatant. " --June 9, 2002 Presidential Order to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, to take military custody of Jose Padilla as an "enemy combatant"
