Determined to secure unlimited authority for the President to wage the war on terror, a war with undefined limits in space and time, the Administration first asked Congress for authority to "wage" the war through any means and in any place, including within the United States. Rebuffed, it made the most of the authorization it had been given and satisfied itself that it could go beyond this authority based on the meaning it ascribed to the phrase "Commander in Chief" in the Constitution. The results: warrantless spying on Americans, kidnapping and torture of suspects, unlawful and indefinite detention and torture of American citizens, and incalculable damage to the very concept of America as a place ruled by law, not people.
It is plain that Cheney's and, ultimately, Bush's view of the office of the presidency is indistinguishable from dictatorship. The president has unlimited authority to prosecute a war. The president has unlimited authority to choose whether and how to engage in war. The president has unlimited authority to define when war begins, when it ends, and who the enemies are. Whatever else the Constitution might mean, it surely precludes such a role for any government official.
Here, again, is the short form of the Contract with America that we must demand our representatives accept:
- Restore the right of habeas corpus.
- Protect the people against arbitrary detention, arrest, and spying.
- Defund the office of Dick Cheney, incapacitating him from making a further mess of the rule of law and our national interests. At the same time, ensure the firing of David Addington and his disqualification from public service.
- Require the approval of Congress before attacking another nation.
- Stop lying about Iraq. No more "wait and see."
- Do your duty and begin an impeachment inquiry against the President.
It's our duty to demand no less.
1 comment:
Sounds like you support Ron Paul, he agrees with you.
http://ronpaul2008.com
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