The View from the Meadow

Observations of the Passing Scene

Political and Social Commentary by Dave Satre

Uncontrolled Power Destroys the Concept of Democracy
American Freedoms Threatened by Cheney and the Bush Administration

The Bush Administration is using its powers to subvert the rights and privileges of American citizens under the guise of combating terrorism. The Constitution is being shredded, our form of government is being perverted and American democracy is endangered.

Bush believes he has the power to do just about anything he wants, including the ability to read your emails, tap your phone calls, open your regular mail, break and enter your home and even kidnap you. He claims Congress and the courts do not have the power to stop him.

President Bush and Vice President Cheney espouse the theory of the unitary executive, something practiced by the Nixon administration to the detriment of America and its citizens. They claim presidential orders cannot be reviewed, questioned, or altered by the other branches of government. Bush claims his powers are unlimited and he demands the ability to do so in complete secrecy.

You cannot have that much power in the hands of any single person and still maintain a Democracy. Bush, with his limited intelligence and lack of real-world experience, is the absolute worst example of someone who should have that kind of power.

GW used the war on terror to put himself above the law and has created a secret presidency of classified decisions and orders. These, in collaboration with the country’s telecommunications companies, enable torture, illegal detentions, and wiretapping without warrants.

Secrecy and unauthorized surveillance are an anathema to American values of freedom and privacy. Such acts are the heredity of the US involvement in Vietnam and the executive branch’s excessive use of the CIA to undermine foreign democracies through unlawful domestic spying.

The Church Select Senate Committee following the Vietnam War headed Congressional attempts to reject presidential claims of 'inherent authority' and restore checks and balances in the system, including outlawing electronic surveillance without warrants.

Dick Cheney, who was involved with the Nixon Administration, led advocates of presidential powers in the attempt to combat that effort. He’s still leading that parade. Cheney continues to believe the Nixon administration, criminals that they were, handled power the way it should be handled.

He was also President Ford's Chief of Staff. (so who really handled the power there?) This was the first time in his life Cheney had a substantial amount of power and responsibility. He remains totally committed to the concept of expanding the powers of the presidency to this day. VP Cheney jumped on the opportunity following the 9/11 terrorist attacks to claim extraordinary presidential powers under the cloak of national security.

Bush doesn’t know any better, but he loves the idea of unlimited, unchecked power and supports anything Cheney does in this direction. They initiated a special program to began spying on Americans without the need for warrants and the National Security Agency (NSA) created a huge database containing personal information. The program was classified as top secret – in accordance with the Bush/Cheney passion for operating in secrecy.

Congress distinctly prohibited such activities without the approval of a special court in the 1970s because of the Nixon administration’s activities.

The Democrats’ current efforts to rein in GW are apparently being thwarted by these claims of executive privilege. The subject of presidential powers recently arose again during Senate hearings over the president's nominee for attorney general, Michael Mukasey, following Alberto Gonzales’ inevitable resignation from the position after proving himself the most incompetent crony ever appointed to public office.

Senator Patrick Leahy pointed out the fact that the presidential oath names the protection of the Constitution of the United States as the president’s primary duty. GW refers to the government as being his government. It's not -- it's the government of the people of America.

When Leahy questioned Mukasey regarding the president’s authorization of illegal conduct, Mukasey’s response was evasive. So was his response to questions concerning the legality of the use of waterboarding, a torture technique currently employed in the Guantanamo prison.

In 1974, when the Watergate scandals revealed the astonishing crimes and secret abuses of power by Nixon and his cronies the House Judiciary Committee deliberated Nixon's impeachment.

At that time, Congresswoman Barbara Jordan of Texas went straight to the heart of the matter:” My faith in the constitution is whole -- it is complete, it is total -- and I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminution, the subversion and the destruction of the Constitution.”

Where are the Barbara Jordans of today? We certainly need them!

Dave Satre
Oct 29th, 2007

LINKS to Related Information:

Bill Moyers Journal
The Path to Power
PBS -- October 26, 2007
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/10262007/transcript1.html

Bush Secrecy.org
http://www.bushsecrecy.org/

Bush Secrecy on Domestic Spying Under Fire
San Jose Mercury
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_6637106

Bush’s Secret Surveillance State
The Future of Freedom Foundation
http://www.fff.org/comment/com0512i.asp