In a televised address to his subjects (1/10/07), King George proclaimed that, after weeks of painstaking consultation and holiday parties, he had decided to increase the number of American troops in Iraq. He knows the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a majority of the military commanders on the ground oppose this strategy. More importantly, he knows that a majority of the American people and their representatives in Congress believe we should be bringing troops home from Iraq--instead of sending more. King George knows all this; but he doesn't care, because he is The Decider.
As bad as it is, this further escalation of the War on Iraq is just the latest symptom of a much more deadly disease that has afflicted the United States of America.
• "The endless Iraq war is decreasingly about Iraq and increasingly about the U.S. Constitution. ... [Bush's decision to escalate the war] is based on his flawed and dangerous theory of the "unitary presidency," a theory under which, once war is declared, the president as commander in chief can ignore constitutional checks and balances, disregard the bill of rights, suspend accountability, and concentrate dictatorial power in his own hands." --Former Senator and Presidential candidate Gary Hart, HuffingtonPost, 1/9/07
Aided and abetted by a Republican-controlled Congress, the Bush Administration has systematically undermined and eliminated our Constitutional protections--one by one--all in the name of national security and keeping us safe from Islamic boogeymen. One of the last major pieces of legislation passed by the Rubberstamp Republicans (before we threw the bums out) was to drive a final stake through the heart of our Constitution and give the President near-dictatorial powers.
• "On Sept. 29, 2006, the Congress of the United States passed what can be termed 'The US Enabling Act.' It is the equivalent of the Act by the same name passed by the German Reichstag on March 23, 1933 [that] gave the German Chancellor, Adolf Hitler, the power to over-ride the protections for freedom and liberty written into the German (Weimar) Constitution ... The US version gives the President the power to over-ride Articles I, II, V and VI and Amendments I, IV, V, VI and VIII of the US Constitution if he determines that it is necessary to do so to protect the nation from terrorism..." --Steven Jonas, Contributing Author for The Political Junkies and columnist for BuzzFlash.com, 10/1/06
For the past six years, the Rubberstamp Republican Congress has allowed the Bush Administration to write the laws, interpret the laws, and execute the laws. As anyone who has ever taken a civic class knows, this is not how the United States government is supposed to operate. The result is that the United States now has a President/King that believes that our laws and our Constitution do not apply to him.
• "Laws are just whips to keep the common herd in line; they don't apply to the elite, as Bush's own lawyers and minions have openly asserted in the memos, signing statements, court cases and presidential decrees asserting the "inherent power" of the "unitary executive" to override any law he pleases." --Chris Floyd, Truthout.org, 1/9/07
• "[Bush] asserts that his power as the nation's commander in chief entitles him to overrule or ignore bills sent to him by Congress for his signature. Behind this claim is a doctrine of the "unitary executive", which argues that the president's oath of office endows him with an independent authority to decide what a law means." -- Martin Kettle, The Guardian, 6/17/06
The American people did their part in the 2006 election. They voted against the Bush Republicans, the Bush Wars, and the "unitary Presidency". Now it is up to the new Congress to let this President know that he is not a King. He is a public servant--the head of one co-equal branch of government--bound to obey the Constitution, our international treaties, and the laws of our land.
To do this, Congress is going to have to do a lot more than whining and passing non-binding resolutions. Bush is like the "Terminator": "[He] can't be reasoned with, [He] can't be bargained with. [He] doesn't feel pity or remorse or fear. And [He] absolutely will not stop."
...so how does Congress stop him?
They can start by growing a spine and quit saying, "He's the Commander-in-Chief. There is nothing we can do." There are lots of things they can and should do. They need to rescind the Authorization to Use Military Force given to Bush after the attacks of September 11, 2001--along with every other power and/or authority that Congress may have granted him for his so-called War on Terror. Bush has proved, repeatedly, that he cannot be trusted with any kind of power and that he is unfit to be our Commander in Chief (having done far more harm to our military than the "enemy" could possibly do).
If the Founding Fathers found it wise to give Congress the sole authority to declare war, it is hard to believe that Congress cannot declare the end to a war. They should not hesitate to cut off funding for Mr. Bush's wars--except for what is needed to bring the troops home. The American people know the difference between supporting the troops and sacrificing them in a lost cause.
Congress should also dismantle the web of unconstitutional laws, signing statements, and legal mumbo-jumbo that have congealed together into the abomination called the "unitary presidency". There is widespread agreement that many of these laws, enacted to expand the powers of the President, are unconstitutional and will eventually be struck down by the courts. Until then, though, King George will continue to wield his newfound powers to spy, torture, kidnap and murder around the globe. Congress must act to reinstate the U.S. Constitution as the supreme law of the land.
This means a Constitutional confrontation between Congress and the Bush Administration is inevitable, and the sooner--the better. The King has already dispatched warships to the Persian Gulf to threaten and provoke Iran, and according to retired Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner, who taught strategy at the Air Force college, the Naval College and the National War College:
• "[T]he decision has been made and military operations are under way [in Iran]." --ThinkProgress.com, 4/18/06
• "I think the plan's been picked: bomb the nuclear sites in Iran. It's a terrible idea, it's against US law and it's against international law, but I think they've decided to do it." --The Nation, 9/21/06
Mick Youther is an American citizen, an independent voter, a veteran, a parent, a Christian, a scientist, a writer, and all-around nice guy who has been aroused from a comfortable apathy by the high crimes and misdemeanors of the Bush Administration.
Congress and the Senate, if you have not already told G.W.Bush we have already gave him a chance in Iraq. That had started the day he invaded them, well you G.W. Bush have been nothing but one blunder after another with the same results. Check in Bush, because its time you listen up and shut up. We don't stand behind war criminals in this country to start out with, even though your privileged misguidance of wealth, power and his ego have led you to believe so.
This is about the new world order that you once bellowed out to summon the call of war of are young soldiers. What you have done was a crime of butchery of the innocent. This is about the weapons of mass destruction you informed us Iraq was storing, with your claims you had reliable sources of information on, well being question on just how liable the info was. We believed that you were incompetent back then and lied to the American public as well George Walker Bush, its time for you to stop. The laws of this land don't protect you for being ignorantly misinformed. You violated international laws of war. Its time that you must be Impeached to save the values this country stands for and that our young have died for.
We also don't believe you Congress and Senate should make us get on are hands and knees to address these wrong doings. You have let this man trample our rights as citizens of this country and this to must also stop.
This farce of your wrong approach letting Bush slide eventually will boil over to civil unrest, I say don't give Bush those chances.
by
Fred F (1 articles, 1 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 361 comments)
on Saturday, January 13, 2007 at 11:51:35 AM
I think they should not only debate the surge as it is mentioned here they should rescind the original authorization to use force. We should redeploy some because of the mess we will leave behind, but we should bring them home. They served us well it is the Commander who is a criminal.
by
Sleeper (1 articles, 1 quicklinks, 6 diaries, 276 comments)
on Saturday, January 13, 2007 at 2:13:31 PM
Unfortunately it took segregationist Governor Wallace to reveal the truth that "there's not a dime's worth of difference between" Republicans and Democrats. The Democrats willingly went along with the War in Iraq, suspension of Habeas Corpus, detaining protesters, opening mail, banning books like "America Deceived' from Amazon, stealing private lands (Kelo decision), warrant-less wiretapping and refusing to investigate 9/11 properly. They are both guilty of treason. Neither party will stop the upcoming war on Iran, then Syria, then Lebanon, then.......
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Last link (before Google Books bends to gov't Will and drops the title):
America Deceived (book)
by
Lorring II (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 86 comments)
on Saturday, January 13, 2007 at 9:58:57 PM
A full blown nuclear war is closer than most people can imagine.
What many people do not understand is that the nuclear weapons that are poised to exterminate the mass of the human race, are going to do just that; Exterminate the human race.
After this Fiend goes, we need to begin bringing into courts throughout this land and other nuclear armed lands, the people who have callously made the decisions to exterminate the human race in an all out nuclear war.
We are the "Living Dead," the people consigned to the nuclear inferno, by our slightly more clever, Murdering rich.
This is what the entire Extraterrestrial phenomenon is all about. The "ET" understand that our genocidal nuclear war fighting cannibal elite could not stop themselves from ordering the immolation of the human race.
Our Murdering rich, decided that we had to be exterminated with the use of nuclear weapons, way back in April of 1947.
The "ET" along with "Marking" a plane at O Hare airport in Chicago recently, are also back at Malmstrom nuclear missile launch facility, and are throwing a mutilated cow again.
These high level powers are trying to wake us all up.
The decision to exterminate us all with nuclear weapons has never been changed. The strategy is still to go ahead with a full blown nuclear conflagration.
We exist only due to the intervention into our world by the "ET."
We are the "Living Dead."
George is so off balance, that if this Congress can not shut him down, if we do nothing; then we may be Nut's.
I got to give it to king George when it comes to shifting the blame to clear his delusional conscious. For example, he would like us to come up with a better solution for Iraq than his reign of terror.
The Solution
Its simple king George, we pack are soldiers up send them home then let the Iraqi's have there revolutionary war, that you George created, not me , not any political party's, just you George Walker Bush.
by
Fred F (1 articles, 1 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 361 comments)
on Saturday, January 13, 2007 at 11:49:25 PM
There may be one or two Democrats in Congress who have never accepted campaign donations from the military-industrial complex, and who do not own stock (often in a family member's name) in the military-industrial complex.
Asking them to stop the war is like asking them to take a vow of poverty -- they aren't going to do it.
There is a dime's worth of difference between the Republicans and the Democrats. The Republicans hold MORE stock in the military-industrial complex. But just because somebody else is earning $30 an hour and you're only earning $20 an hour, doesn't mean that you're going to give up your job and let your family starve. Democrats value their stock portfolios every bit as much as Republicans do. They may be "lesser" stock portfolios, as befitting the "lesser" evil party, but they're not about to vote for anything that would drop their holdings a tick.
I'm getting tired of repeating myself, but the Democrats cannot impeach Bush because you can't impeach somebody for high crimes and misdemeanors that you voted for. Not unless you want to impeach yourself along with him.
And apart from two or three like Kucinich who may not be profiting from the illegal invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, nobody in Congress is going to vote against their own financial interests. Not even when pigs fly, hell freezes over, and the fat lady sings. Nobody at Nuremberg expressed any remorse, and none of these war criminals in Congress will either.
Oh, some of them may posture a bit to please the crowds. But they can introduce all the stop-the-war-funding, stop-the-war-profiteering, and stop-the-lobbying bills they want, because they know that Bush will veto them and they can blame him for their failures. That's why they can't impeach him.
If there is anyone reading this who hasn't yet read the late Walter Karp's book, "Indispensable Enemies," about our corrupt two-party system, please get it from your library or order it online or from your favorite bookstore, and read it. The Democrats and Republicans cannot survive without each other. And if you haven't read the book, you might believe them when they tell you that you only have two choices, so you have to pick one of them.
You're an American. Nobody has the right to limit your choices. Not "the decider," not your political party, nobody. If you are opposed to crimes against humanity, torture, and war crimes, don't just visit, phone, or email your representatives and tell them so. Tell them that if they don't stop the crimes against humanity, the torture, and the war crimes, they're never going to get another dime or another vote from you. And mean it. Because if you don't cut them off, they won't cut the war funding off.
And if you haven't already done so, and you aren't already firmly against torture and wars of aggression, please go here and watch the video.
Your representatives take you for granted because they believe that they can get away with it, just as Bush believes that he can get away with anything he wants. Asking them nicely isn't going to get you anywhere. It is time for some tough love: CUT THEM OFF!
by
Mark E. Smith (21 articles, 30 quicklinks, 100 diaries, 1325 comments)
on Sunday, January 14, 2007 at 4:59:38 AM
I sincerely hope that we are able to "cut them off". Otherwise our best hope may be that the military will turn against them at the behest of the people. Our system is broken beyond repair and will not work properly again until, with a few notable exceptions, the players are changed.
by
Steve (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 27 comments)
on Sunday, January 14, 2007 at 8:07:36 AM
"The White House is banking on the assumption that it can execute its "new way forward" in Iraq before Congress can derail it."
Expand that statement to read: "The object is a larger one: Expanding executive power, for its own sake, with claims to limitless presidential authority before Congress can derail it."
Enter David Addington, Cheney's chief of staff and legal adviser. Addington's worldview in brief: a single-minded devotion to something called the New Paradigm, a constitutional theory of virtually limitless executive power, wherein "the President, as Commander-in-Chief, has the authority to disregard virtually all previously known legal boundaries, if national security demands it."
Addington and Cheney had been "laying the groundwork" for a vast expansion of presidential power long before 9/11.Cheney has been working behind the scene since the early Eighties in various political appointments to establish an authoritarian government. Wielding powers unearned through the democratic process, he has clawed his way to the top as a sociopathic sycophant and "power behind the throne" to subvert democracy.
That's Cheney's ambition and the essence of the "New Paradigm."
by
rabblerowzer (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 227 comments)
on Sunday, January 14, 2007 at 6:05:52 AM
The following will be delivered to Congress on January 29, 2007 by a few dedicated thoughtful citizens:
We, The People For Peace and Justice, the undersigned, request that our elected Congressional Representatives make all efforts to accomplish the following in 2007.
To end the war in Iraq and make all efforts,economic and humanitarian, to assist the Iraqi people in rebuilding their country.
To once again be the world leader for peace and the spread of democracy by peaceful means.
To be honest brokers for peace in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict,to assist in lifting the international sanctions against the Palestinian people and begin humanitarian aid to all the suffering parties in Israel and Palestine.
To work with the United Nations and the international community to find peaceful solutions to conflicts,with the use of strong economic sanctions, pressure all non compliant countries to open their nuclear programs to the International Atomic Energy Agency for full unobstructed inspection.
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