The Patriot Act is a stain upon the history of this country. It was passed at a moment when everyone tried to come together as Americans and you took advantage of it. This past November, the Patriot Act and other civil liberty infringements were soundly rebuked.
"When our economy was struggling, we worked together to pass tax relief that has helped our economy grow, create jobs, and raise the standard of living for the American people. When we saw that our public schools were failing our children, we came together to pass the No Child Left Behind Act, insisting on high standards, accountability and better options for parents."
YOU passed tax relief and most of it went to the wealthiest Americans. It has not spurred any kind of real recovery in this country and the last election showed that Americans have had enough of your playing fast and loose with the facts. It is time for sensible taxes for those that have the most in this country. The NCLB Act occurred before you had complete control of both houses, but either way, you forgot to fund it.
"Our priorities begin with defeating the terrorists who killed thousands of innocent Americans on September 11, 2001--and who are working hard to attack us again. These terrorists are part of a broader extremist movement that is now doing everything it can to defeat us in Iraq."
No sir. You still don't get it. We now know the truth. We know that the people who you claim perpetrated the atrocities of 9/11 had nothing to do with Iraq. We know that Iraq had nothing to do with WMD, al Qaeda, or 9/11. We know you lied sir. What you have in Iraq sir is a civil war, not extremists trying to stop the spread of democracy. The priorities that the American people charged the new Congress with are real simple. The war is over, get the kids home and get them home now. The new Congress has two years to figure it out, or we will elect a new group of people to do the will of the American people, not the corporate elite.
"In the days ahead, I will be addressing our nation about a new strategy to help the Iraqi people gain control of the security situation and hasten the day when the Iraqi government gains full control over its affairs."
Allow me to save you some time sir. The answer is no. There will not be another 20,000 of our kids to be used as targets for your failed policies. The answer is NO. You may choose where to send troops, as Commander in Chief, but Congress controls the money. You know; the money you keep pouring into the coffers of Halliburton? The mandate set by the American people this past November is very clear. There will be no additional troops, there will only be the reduction of the current troops. If the Dems prove to be unable to carry out the will of the people that put them in power, then they will lose that power in just two years. The debate is over. The war is over. It does not matter how much you insult the American people next week sir. That it would take you four years to design a strategy is insulting. To hear you ignore the Iraq Study Group and every clear-thinking military expert is insulting. To hear you even utter the word sacrifice is beyond insulting, it is vile. You do not understand the concept of sacrifice enough to comment on it. You use the dead to your advantage, design flawed policies, and then wrap yourself up in a blood stained flag and dare to lecture anyone about sacrifice? The answer is no sir.
"But we can help Iraq defeat the extremists inside and outside of Iraq--and we can help provide the necessary breathing space for this young government to meet its responsibilities. If democracy fails and the extremists prevail in Iraq, America's enemies will be stronger, more lethal, and emboldened by our defeat. Leaders in both parties understand the stakes in this struggle. We now have the opportunity to build a bipartisan consensus to fight and win the war."
Clueless, arrogant George. For four years you were the picture of partisanship. Now you expect to have a shred of credibility in calling for the very thing you disdained for four years? No sir. Once again, it is not about republicans or democrats, it is about Americans and the Americans have spoken. The war is over.
"America's priorities also include keeping our economy strong. The elections have not reversed the laws of economics. It is a fact that economies do best when you reward hard work by allowing people to keep more of what they have earned. And we have seen that businesses can expand and hire more workers when they have more money to invest--and since August 2003, America's employers have added more than seven million new jobs."
Our economy is not strong sir. Not for average Americans. There are no laws of economics that dictates handing back billions of dollars to the richest people creates any wealth or opportunity for the poorest. That is the failed Reaganomics your father once called "voodoo economics." How many jobs were lost under your watch sir? Remember, no more fast and loose with the facts. You can stand up there and claim the economy is doing well, but Americans know better. They are working harder for less money and healthcare is even more unaffordable. Your Heath Savings Accounts are a scam, and your refusal to allow negotiating for lower prescription drugs has also been rebuked.
"It is also a fact that our tax cuts have fueled robust economic growth and record revenues. Because revenues have grown and we've done a better job of holding the line on domestic spending, we met our goal of cutting the deficit in half three years ahead of schedule. By continuing these policies, we can balance the federal budget by 2012 while funding our priorities and making the tax cuts permanent. In early February, I will submit a budget that does exactly that. The bottom line is tax relief and spending restraint are good for the American worker, good for the American taxpayer, and good for the federal budget. Now is not the time to raise taxes on the American people."
So many lies, where to start? First of all, the tax cuts have not spurred any economic growth, let alone "robust" record revenues. The economy is a walking disaster. There are two Americas, as John Edwards is fond of saying. The rich have done very well under your tenure, but the poor have seen the American dream be robbed from them. Next, you have not cut the deficit in half. You are playing with the numbers as usual. You project ridiculously high deficits, and then when they fall short, you claim that means you actually did something. Nonsense. The American people decide what are the priorities sir, not you. You had four years and chose the Iraq debacle as the priority for this country. You want a lesson in fiscal restraint; you can start there because the American people have decided it is more important to concentrate on the American people. As for tax relief, the American people have always agreed that targeted tax relief for the middle and lower classes are a good thing. It is those tax cuts for your base that we are demanding be reversed. We do not think that Paris Hilton needs a tax cut, nor do we believe that by cutting her taxes, she will create new jobs. Now is the time sir to restore fairness to the tax system. You can try and cleverly package it up by trying to scare the American people that the Dems are "raising their taxes". They will not buy it. By saving billions on the war, and making the billionaires of this country pay their fair share, the funding priorities for the American people that have been ignored for four years can be center stage again.
"By balancing the budget through pro-growth economic policies and spending restraint, we are better positioned to tackle the longer term fiscal challenge facing our country: reforming entitlements--Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid--so future generations can benefit from these vital programs without bankrupting our country."
Sigh. Saying you have done something does not mean you have. The budget is not balanced sir. Furthermore, the American people have spoken loud and clear about Social Security and Medicare; stay away from it! They can see that you scheme is to dismantle the programs, not save them. Your lies no longer work sir.
"One important message I took away from the election is that people want to end the secretive process by which Washington insiders are able to slip into legislation billions of dollars of pork-barrel projects that have never been reviewed or voted on by Congress."
Anthony Wade, a contributing writer to opednews.com, is dedicated to educating the populace to the lies and abuses of the government. He is a 41-year-old independent writer from New York with political commentary articles seen on multiple websites. A Christian progressive and professional Rehabilitation Counselor working with the poor and disabled, Mr. Wade believes that you can have faith and hold elected officials accountable for lies and excess.
Now that the Democrats won, it is time to impeach for actions such as the gov't rountinely violating our Constitutional rights.
They violate the 1st Amendment by caging demonstrators and banning books like "America Deceived" from Amazon.America Deceived (book) They violate the 2nd Amendment by confiscating guns during Katrina.
They violate the 4th Amendment by conducting warrant-less wiretaps.
They violate the 5th and 6th Amendment by suspending habeas corpus.
They violate the 8th Amendment by torturing.
They violate the entire Constitution by starting 2 illegal wars based on lies and on behalf of a foriegn gov't.
Fix up that, impeach everyone responsible and while you are at it, investigate 9/11 a bit more thoroughly.
by
Lorring II (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 86 comments)
on Thursday, January 4, 2007 at 7:33:29 AM
The Edge of Madness: "We're not going to take it anymore!"
Hi Anthony,
It is hard to keep quiet when we have a president who is making mad statements. I believe that everyone should just say "We're not going to take it anymore!" (We just watched the movie "Network" now out on DVD.)
When I read the headline about president gw bush wanting the dems to get along and go along with him I burst out laughing. We must show this man the door. He must resign. Quick.
Keep on writing. Happy New Year. Let's see if the Democrats and the real Republicans do the right thing.
Aimee
Friday Harbor, WA USA
by
Aimee (0 articles, 2 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 100 comments)
on Thursday, January 4, 2007 at 8:46:13 AM
Strong push, go for it push Bush over his edge. Its you sir, "We the People of the United States of America" do want and will support these views, the end of Bushisim nonesense politics.
by
Fred F (1 articles, 1 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 361 comments)
on Thursday, January 4, 2007 at 10:30:29 PM
Your succinct delineation of George's crimes was very helpful. A lot of people talk about Bush being crazy and it is used more as an insult than anything else. What a lot of people don't understand, which has to do with how dangerous this man reall is, is that George W. Bush is actually psychotic. He is a sociopath/psychopath. I have worked with mentally ill adults as a counselor and have known three sociopaths personally (outside of the mental health system).
In a book called "The Sociopath Next Door" by Dr. Martha Stout, she claims that 4% of Americans are sociopaths. That's one in 25. When most people think of psychopaths, they think of druling mass murderers. The fact is that most sociopaths are quite charming. A psychiatrist wrote an article suggesting that psychopaths make very good CEOs.
The simple definition of a sociopath is that they do not have a conscience. It is this simple fact that has allowed him to do all of the outrageous and unthinkable things he has done. Lying, to a sociopath, comes as easily as breathing. That is why I don't believe we can afford two more years of Bush, or even one more day. He really doesn't care about people at all, not even those close to him. A sociopath is nothing more than an ego on legs. Not only will he not see the consequences of his decisions or actions, he doesn't really care.
In conclusion, we cannot expect Bush to act rationally on any issue in the next two years. He must be removed from office as soon as possible and he must stand trial for his crimes if America is to have any chance of retrieving any moral high ground again.
Thank you again for your article.
Bob Trowbridge
by
Bob Trowbridge (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 53 comments)
on Friday, January 5, 2007 at 4:50:16 PM
Excellent essay, Anthony, and I couldn't agree more.
But I really think there is one more piece to the story.
Psychopaths answer self-serving calls from other psychopaths.
But just who are those "psychopaths with attache cases?"
I hope the following two links explain this:
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