Goodbye, Bill of Rights
By Philip Giraldi on April 13, 2009 at 11:20 AM in 9/11, Al Qaeda, Bill of Rights, CIA, FBI, Homeland Security, National Security, Obama's Broken Promises, Patriotism, President Barack Obama, Terrorism, Torture, U.S. Constitution, Unitary Executive Powers/Signing Statements
(Susan’s April 13th Note: I AM PISSED OFF. This essay is bumped up because, dammit, I need to restore my FOCUS on the ELEPHANTS in the room! While it’s fascinating to debate the pirate crisis, it is foremost VITAL to focus on the dangerous stories such as Obama’s power-hungry expansion of executive authority, known in legal circles as a unitary presidency. For more, see “Jonathan Turley Amps Up the Attack On Obama.” DO NOT LET PEOPLE FORGET THIS!!! With the pirate crisis, the insane multi-trillion-dollar budget and Treasury secretary Tim Geithner’s power grabs have gone by the wayside! We are duty-bound to stay on the BIG issues.)
SusanUnPC’s April 8th note: When even Keith Olbermann lowers the boom — calling President Barack Obama’s decision “change you cannot believe in”, condemning Obama for going further than Bush in his expansion of invasive, extra-Constitutional powers — you know the Obama Administration is going to the “dark side,” as Jane Mayer describes in her esteemed book. Howard Fineman explains the administration’s amoral political calculus and its “newbie” problem, and refers to Mayer’s book. When Mayer is a guest on No Quarter Radio soon, we will ask her about this astonishing abandonment of key principles touted by Obama during his candidacy, when he said whatever it took. Question of the Day: Didn’t the Kossack crowd scream for Bush’s impeachment over precisely this issue? Why not threaten Obama with impeachment?
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P.S. Do you remember this Boston Globe article about Hillary Clinton on October 11, 2007? “Clinton vows to check executive powers.” If but for the willful Obamabots’ delusions and caucus thuggery, we’d have a president who would stand up to the intelligence community because, for one thing, Hillary wouldn’t have a learning curve hurdle and already knows who’s who, while Obama, as always, thinks he can cover up his ignorance by charming people through doing their bidding. My hunch is that, to a one, the intel community has disdain for his ignorance and unctuous collusion.
Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer and friend of Larry Johnson’s, is a contributing editor to The American Conservative and a fellow at the American Conservative Defense Alliance. Originally published at Antiwar.com.
Those who hoped that the change promised by candidate Barack Obama would include repeal of the various acts that have stripped Americans of their constitutional rights should be disappointed.
Benjamin Franklin supposedly wrote, “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” The citation is likely apocryphal, at least in terms of its attribution to Franklin, but it is useful shorthand for the unfortunate abandonment of many of the liberties guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution as a consequence of 9/11.
The trauma of 9/11 created an opportunity for those seeking to centralize executive power, an objective of recent presidents from both political parties. Many Americans initially accepted that there had to be some abridgment of fundamental liberties while fighting a multi-faceted and unconventional war against terrorism, but few realize just how much the constitutional rights that all citizens take for granted have been eroded. History also teaches us that once a right is suspended, in all likelihood it is gone forever.
The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 might well be described as one of history’s more spectacular euphemisms employed to gut a constitution, somewhat akin to Hitler’s “emergency act” in the wake of the Reichstag fire of 1933. It is better known as PATRIOT Act I. PATRIOT Act I became law six weeks after the fall of the Twin Towers and was followed by PATRIOT Act II in 2006. The two laws together diminish constitutional guarantees of free speech, freedom of association, freedom from illegal search, the right to habeas corpus, prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, and prohibition of the illegal seizure of private property. The First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments in the Bill of Rights have all been discarded or abridged in the rush to make it easier to investigate, torture, and jail both foreigners and American citizens. The PATRIOT Act also incorporates the Financial Anti-Terrorism Act of Oct. 17, 2001, which permits the freezing of assets and investigation of individuals suspected of being financial supporters of terrorism. “Suspected” is the key word, as there is no oversight or appeal in the process.
The Military Commission Act of 2006 (MCA) followed the PATRIOT Acts, creating military tribunals for the trying of “unlawful enemy combatants,” including American citizens. Unlike a civil or criminal court, the accused needs only a two-thirds vote by the commission members present to be convicted. The act permits the indefinite jailing of suspects in a military prison without being charged with a crime or given access to a lawyer. The government is not required to produce any normally admissible evidence at a commission hearing and can rely on hearsay or even information obtained overseas during torture to make its case. Detainees do not have access to any classified information used against them and cannot cross-examine or even know the identity of witnesses. The MCA suspends habeas corpus for anyone charged and forbids the application of the Geneva Conventions to mitigate conditions of confinement or to challenge the judicial process or verdict. The Geneva Conventions also cannot be invoked if the accused subsequently claims he was tortured or otherwise abused, protecting overly zealous interrogators from later charges of “war crimes.” The act was also designed to cover all cases that were pending, meaning that it was retroactive.
An executive order issued on July 17, 2007, which is still in effect, authorized the president to seize the property of anyone who “threatens stabilization efforts in Iraq.” As the administration’s own Justice Department decides what constitutes “threatening stabilization efforts,” the order can be used to go after any critic of the government. Most disturbing, the order does not permit a challenge to the information the seizure is based on, and it also permits the confiscation of the property of anyone who comes to the assistance of the suspected de-stabilizer.
The threat to civil liberties is real. Under the authority of the PATRIOT Act, the FBI requested more than 30,000 national security letters in 2007, and the number was surely higher in 2008. The letters enable the FBI to look at anyone’s personal information without any judicial oversight or showing of cause. Anyone who is presented with a letter and compelled to cooperate to provide information on a suspect cannot reveal that the letter has been received. Are there 30,000 terrorists roaming the United States? If there were, the country would surely be a bombed-out ruin by now. The government is instead using the security letters and the other tools provided by the PATRIOT Act legislation to look at people who are completely innocent of any wrongdoing, because it is convenient to be able to do so without the bother of having to go to a judge for a search warrant.
Sen. Barack Obama opposed the MCA and voted against it. He was not in the Senate when the first PATRIOT Act was passed, but he criticized the second version for its abuse of civil liberties before voting for an amended version. Candidate Obama ran on his record of opposition to the various pieces of legislation, noting consistently that they had authorized the abuse of authority by law enforcement and had abridged the rights of every American. Unfortunately, President Obama appears to have forgotten the principled positions he took as a senator and presidential candidate. After his inauguration, he moved quickly to publicly ban the CIA’s use of torture, a meaningless gesture in that the Agency had already abandoned the practice, but it now appears that he will do nothing to revoke Bush-era legislation like the MCA that he once strongly criticized. There is every indication that he will also endorse renewal of the PATRIOT Act when it expires at the end of the year, afraid that if he does not do so and there is a terrorist attack he will pay a significant political price. The Obama administration has also been silent about the National Security Agency’s warrantless wiretaps and has invoked the “state-secrets privilege” in connection with a lawsuit by the Islamic charity al-Haramain in an apparent bid to prevent disclosure of the warrantless wiretap procedure.
President Obama is not just contradicting his progressive campaign promises and betraying many of the people who voted for him. As a lawyer, he surely understands that protecting the government’s questionably legal “rights” to monitor citizens completely subverts the rule of law, because it guarantees that there will be no accountability. Currently, judges who rule on the state-secrets issue are not themselves allowed to see the alleged classified information, meaning that there is absolutely no transparency to the process in which the government is asserting an extralegal privilege that is surely unconstitutional.
If the Obama administration is beginning to sound like the Bush White House, it should. To be sure, the new president is relying on the advice of many Bush administration holdovers like FBI Director Robert Mueller. Mueller asserts, without providing any evidence, that the tools provided by the PATRIOT Act have been effective in preventing terrorism, just as Bush-era intelligence chiefs claimed that torture and extraordinary rendition were essential to meet the terrorist threat. All such claims should be viewed with extreme skepticism, particularly as they are rarely backed up by any evidence. The government also often lies when it wants to make a case for some illegal action. Claims made in 2008 that the waterboarding of Abu Zubaida produced a flood of information that frustrated terrorist plots are now revealed to have been false. Zubaida confused his interrogators and sent them off on wild goose chases with information that was either deliberately deceptive or flat-out wrong. In reality, the government cannot cite a single instance where the use of draconian new legislation or illegal procedures like torture has either prevented a terrorist incident or led to the arrest of anyone who was ready, willing, and able to carry out a violent act.
Obama would have been wiser to ignore the experts and sit back and consider the broader picture. Does the creation of a monstrous Department of Homeland Security supported by a bloated defense and intelligence establishment really make sense in light of the threat that the U.S. actually faces? How did we arrive at a 400,000-name no-fly list and an NSA that has conducted hundreds of millions of interceptions of telephone calls without any oversight?
That a small group of terrorists holed up in an isolated and backward part of the world got lucky against an unsuspecting America on 9/11 is clear, but the odds of them repeating that spectacular success are minimal. More than seven years later, the actual vulnerability of international terrorism should be completely clear and the government should be telling the people the good news, that al-Qaeda is on its last legs and that the other Salafist terrorist groups that have a similar philosophy have been hounded and contained all around the world. There has been no successful terrorist action within the United States, and the appeal of jihadist terrorism is on the wane everywhere else. Its moment has passed.
In spite of the reduced threat, under Obama the business of fighting terrorism goes on with a change in the rhetoric but not in the policy, buttressed by an enlarged military budget to spread the cheer to Afghanistan and increased spending on intelligence. And there is no sign that the liberties that Americans have bartered away are about to be returned. Having an amorphous foreign threat hanging around is always good politics, as it can be used to divert attention from more serious problems at home. Having the mechanisms at hand to investigate an American citizen can also be useful when the critics become too loud. Those who feared that George W. Bush would give his successors unconstitutional tools that they would be reluctant to relinquish have apparently been vindicated.
(Release: November 13)
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After 9/11 and the various “security” measures were being imposed, the expanded powers justified by Bush&Co., I remember talking to several people at work who said they would “gladly” give up a little freedom for security.
It was nuts then, and it’s even crazier now. Fear has always been the cloaking mechanism for power grabs. And even the Obamatrons should be kicking back in their seats. Velvet handcuffs are still handcuffs anyway you look at it. We have a Pretender in the White House. Our political and financial house is being ransacked.
Wake up, America. Time is running out!
i heard the same thing. sadly, a lot of people probably *still* think this way.
Lets not also foreget, Weary Barry already issued signing statesment and on one he found the need (no, not the one where he refuses Whistle Blower protection for any who testify to Congress),but the one where he already claimed CONGRESS couldn’t tell him what to do (yes, Congress, the ones who make our laws), that they could only “recommend” and it’s up to him to decide if he follows.
Just gotta [despise] this shallow, DANGEROUS, liar.
So if he were to be impeached and convicted, he would take that as a suggestion that he get the hell out of the White House? Or would we get to see the US Marshalls drag him and Meechelle out? He should re-read, or read, the Constitution. It clearly states that the Executive Branch is there for executing the laws passed by Congress, not that Congress is basically a suggestion box for the President. Obummer needs to realize that he is President, not owner, of the United States.
When can we start the “dragging”????????
CAROL HAKA
I’m in. It would be my pleasure.
he doesn’t like the constitution.dontcha know..gonna change it all around..
His unconscious ignorance is what is so dangerous. He doesn’t know what he doesn’t know. Couple that with his colossal arrogance and you get the trian wreck we are quickly facing.
Obama’s DOJ is protecting Yoo, Bybee and the rest of the torturers. Obama’s using the “state secrets” privilege to protect the corporate wiretappers–AT$T–and keep them immune from prosecution. Obama is expanding the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan, while keeping troops in Iraq.
We’re bombing Pakistan. I don’t recall a declaration of war, do you? Is this just another “pre-emptive” police action, regime change, or what?
Obama has expanded Bush’s deficits exponentially, protects the financial oligarchy, under total secrecy, and basically exemplifies the definition of “FASCISM” with his policy initiatives thus far.
Bush, Obama. What’s the difference? None that I can see.
You didn’t get the memo. Bush grabs power and starts/escalates wars = bad. Obama does the same = good.
I would tend to agree as far as certain matters that Bush and Obama are identical and it’s pathetic for the blind moonbats who voted for this moron. On the other hand, I find the fact that Obama has ZERO affection, respect or admiration for ANYTHING American to make him a billion times more sinister and dangerous. I believe that as we are discovering the lies, who he really is, and watching him badmouth and humiliate America globally, that he has some really bad plans and agenda for us. It’s pretty obvious at this point that nothing good will come from this criminal administration. Thanks for the amazing piece Susan.
FedUp: I really don’t believe Bush had any affection for this country either. He certainly didn’t care about the American people, it was his idea to let millions of illegals come in and steal American jobs. He ripped off Americans every way he could think of to line the pockets of his corporate friends and his family. Remember, Texas is not America, its a republic.
I don’t agree about Bush. Look who his father is. My family knows them distantly and although Bush might not be the brightest bulb, he’s not the venal animal people create. It’s one thing to be stupid, it’s another thing to be intentionally ruining our Republic.
I think it’s misguided to believe that Bush sat around planning how to destroy America every day. I know the meme here is to attack the GOP and Bush with more hatred than anyone could imagine. But do you really think that Bush, coming from the family he came from, just sat around plotting America’s demise? Obama’s agenda IS to end America as we know it. Bush’s wasn’t. He made mistakes, and he got blamed for the Dem Congress and their disaster in the last years, but no way do I believe that Bush is just plain evil and wanted his own country destroyed. This is NOT Obama’s country, nor are we the “people” who he is loyal to. Big difference.
I don’t think venal applies to GW [Dick Cheney is another matter]. But George W. Bush was unfit to be POTUS. He simply wasn’t up to the job [you can be wellmeaning and still incompetent]. GW was pushed into the WH in the same way Obama has been pushed in, by the power brokers behind the curtain.
The agenda is different but the Big Lie is still the Big Lie. Voters have been snookered by both these parties, who care more for their ideology and perks and the money to be had than the welfare of the country.
They all talk a great talk but the words are empty on both sides of the aisle. There are still honest brokers out there from both parties, but we need them to stand up now and start pushing back.
Otherwise being a Democrat or a Republican won’t mean a damn.
I wish we wouldn’t continue to make this about party. Like I have said 100 times, I would have been fine with Hillary or McCain. Period. They are real Americans with our best interests at heart. I don’t give a crap whether Obama was GOP or Dem, he’s not even worthy of a party distinction, unless it’s the Communist Party. He’s not one of us, doesn’t give a shit about us, and he’s selling us out for his owners. That’s a way bigger deal then gee I hate the GOP. He IS intentionally doing this shit and he knows it. That’s the difference. Good God when does the Bush stuff end? This is on a whole different level.
ImFedUp, I’m not party partial at this point. But you cannot scream about what’s happening now without looking at what happened before. The past is prelude.
If we truly want to stop what’s happening, we need to understand how we got here. The Bush years were a disaster and though the Dems have controlled Congress for the last 2+ years, the Republicans were running the show for 6. We can’t escape that fact.
I don’t like either party at this point. But having selective amnesia will not solve anything.
We need term limits for Congress and to kick out the lobbyists.
Kicking out lobbyists seems like a grand idea. I’m less certain about term limits. I’ve always wondered if that might not force truly public service-oriented people from office when they’re doing a good job on behalf of the people who elect them, while removing a sense of accountability when there’s no concern about needing to be reelected. We might find Congress completely filling up with nothing but limited-term carpetbaggers primarily concerned with making a quick score.
The trick seems to be to separate as much as possible Congressional service from the potential for outside monetary rewards.
Good point about accountability. But it goes both ways–Congress members often fail to make unpopular but correct choices because of the threat to their popularity.
Should at least be up for debate, hey?
I would also like to see an outside body ‘police’ Congress instead of letting them do it for themselves–which is so not working for us!
How about ACORN, first, goob? They get NO MONEY. You show your commitment first, because all anyone has heard from an obamabot is that “he is the one we’ve been waiting for” and other such claptrap. Demonstrate your commitment or STFU.
+1
“If we truly want to stop what’s happening, we need to understand how we got here.”
You’re going to have to go a hell of a lot farther back than the last 8 years.
I so very much agree with you….I don’t think most of these people understand just how serious and UNPRECEDENTED this coup is. American are just so naive and so complascent when it comes to the demise of this country…they think it just can’t happen. As a former Soviet…I’ve seen this coming as soon as this Oboob first came out with his candidacy…actually I’ve seen it in the Dem party behaviour ever since 9-11. Kerry was one of them too. People please wake up…EVERY DAY THAT PASSES WILL MAKE IT IMPOSSIBLE TO REVERSE. IT HAPPENS FAST AND THEY’RE SMART…you already have a slim chance of bringing us back from this. One thing is for sure: you will be sorry and you won’t even have the chance to feel embarassed for your rotten choices to date.
These neo-marxists are rats…filthy fickle fuc&^ing rats. So leave Bush alone already he’s done his time doing things for YOUR best interests not his own, and took full heat for it like a REAL MAN…unlike OBOOBI and Co. If he was really as evil as you portray Bush to be then do you really think 95% of the military would be so enthusiastically behind him (even with his mistakes which ultimately only put their lives at stake, not yours)…NO! I’ll take their opinions about his character over the every day ignorant, spoiled and complascent American and Media anyday. ANYDAY!!
It behooves us, I think, to rid ourselves of ideological blinders to see what is happening before us. Don’t kid yourself, I’mFedUp, corporatist aims to change America and thus restructure the world economic order are the driving forces behind BOTH Bush and Obama. It’s becoming ever more clear that GWB was Phase I of this corporatist/New World order takeover; Obama is Phase II. Bush is no saint and neither is Obama. Personality cults are the blinders the puppet masters are counting on to keep us in line.
I don’t see how it’s even remotely comparable. Sorry, I never will. I’m NOT saying people are wrong to judge Bush. You can do it all day long and I don’t care because I didn’t vote for him either time. He’s not my current problem. We can revise history all day, scream that we hate Bush, etc. Now what? It seems that you guys are justifying how awful Obama is by saying “well it’s Bush’s fault.” How is that possible? To my knowledge Bush provided all of his vital records, we know where he came from, etc. The Fraud gives us the finger all day by hiding who he is, lying about it, going all over the world and telling people what losers Americans are. He wants to disarm us and play tea party with dangerous terrorists. He’s sending all of our money overseas, most notably giving money to filth like Hamas, etc. He and his friends will flood this country with illegals just to get votes, and give them welfare, free education, health care, etc. He has earmarked, what, 900 Million to relocate Hamas people to the US. It goes on and on and on. Never mind that he is listening to his owners about collapsing the dollar and this global currency thing. Last time I checked, I still have dollars, so Bush didn’t collapse the dollar. Obama will. It’s just silly to compare Bush and Obama. You guys…really, wake up. This is a whole different animal. And if you think that we are safe, and it’s just some “same old, same old” you are desperately wrong.
You’re not listening, ImFedUp. No one is blaming George W exclusively.
This is an equal opportunity finger of blame. Pretending that the Republicans are blameless is simply a smoke screen. If we don’t weed out the bad apples from both sides of the aisle, we’ll simply vote in another round of smiley faces that lie like hell.
The parties themselves have become corrupt and been led by the nose by the power and money brokers behind the curtain. This is another act in the on-going tragedy: the American demise.
Our house is on fire. And the arsonists came from both parties. If we manage to tamp the fire out and rebuild, we don’t invite them back in again. We throw their asses in jail, where they belong. They can chum it up with Bernie Madoff, start a book club. Better yet, they can beat themselves silly.
Fool me once. But not again.
Peggy Sue, I beg to differ. Every post here…the minute you talk about what the Dems have done you get an excuse that it’s okay because Bush did it. I’m not here to place blame, I just want it to end. Unfortunately, AT THIS MOMENT, not during the Bush years, not during the Reagan years, not the FDR years, etc. AT THIS MOMENT the most dangerous people to our well being are:
Obama - Dem
Pelosi - Dem
Dodd - Dem
Reid - Dem
Frank - Dem
Geithner - Dem
Larry Summers - Dem
George Soros - Dem
Eric Holder - Dem
etc., etc., etc., etc., etc.
Frankly I would be happy if just Pelosi and Reid were gone. That’s a start. But, facts are facts. AT THIS MOMENT those are the people calling the very dangerous shots. That’s all I care about. And the only answer is to replace whomever we can with GOP candidates in 2010 so that we can stop this nasty power grab and road to Socialism, or worse. DC is completely out of wack. I don’t care if it was out of wack six years ago. Ten years ago. I just think the Dems have gone way down the road that we won’t recover from. Whatever part of that is Bush’s fault, and I mean legitimately, not fairy tale land, fine. But right now I don’t give a damn. I want those other traitors gone.
Oops, I left out the world’s biggest moron, Imbiben - Dem
Well then, you and I differ. I want all the traitors gone, regardless of their party affiliation. You want to be a Republican shill that’s up to you.
But I won’t be joining you. From now on, I vote on character. Party be damned!
Republican shill? Oh my GOD. Wow…just…wow. See, that’s the problem that I pointed out…I mention balancing Congress by adding a Republican or two and I’m a “Republican shill?” You just admitted that no matter what I say to you, GOP = Dirty Bastard.
PEGGY SUE
You are one of the few who has chosen for herself a truly BALANCED POLITICAL PERSPECTIVE—free of ObaMyopia and Bush-macho phony patriotism….
Hillary was cheated precisely for the same reasons that you have made your issues here….THANKS!…
I so very much agree with you….I don’t think most of these people understand just how serious and UNPRECEDENTED this coup is. American are just so naive and so complascent when it comes to the demise of this country…they think it just can’t happen. As a former Soviet…I’ve seen this coming as soon as this Oboob first came out with his candidacy…actually I’ve seen it in the Dem party behaviour ever since 9-11. Kerry was one of them too. People please wake up…EVERY DAY THAT PASSES WILL MAKE IT IMPOSSIBLE TO REVERSE. IT HAPPENS FAST AND THEY’RE SMART…you already have a slim chance of bringing us back from this. One thing is for sure: you will be sorry and you won’t even have the chance to feel embarassed for your rotten choices to date.
These neo-marxists are rats…filthy fickle fuc&^ing rats. So leave Bush alone already he’s done his time doing things for YOUR best interests not his own, and took full heat for it like a REAL MAN…unlike OBOOBI and Co. If he was really as evil as you portray Bush to be then do you really think 95% of the military would be so enthusiastically behind him (even with his mistakes which ultimately only put their lives at stake, not yours)…NO! I’ll take their opinions about his character over the every day ignorant, spoiled and complascent American and Media anyday. ANYDAY!!
NOT ME…My friend, who is working around the clock to expose Obama and get him the hell out of the White House, is from the Soviet Union too. She is terrified of what she is watching, and knows damned well that’s where we are headed. People sitting around complacent won’t like their lives too much if they don’t take some actions to stop this, as you say, “coup.” It’s the biggest “coup” in our history and it’s happening right under our noses, and covered up by the media who should all go to hell in a handbasket.
TRIXTA
you got it right! Bush and Obama are the same Coin of Incompetency, the other side of Big Business adn International Oil conspiracy. Those are the guys that really run the country and the world.
And the Oil pipelines for 8 billion are scheduled by huge co’s to be installed going from north of Afganistan through it to Karachi and the Caspian basin.
Obama is sending thousands to Afganistan–not to allow little girls to take Feminism 101 courses but to PROTECT THE PIPELINES int eh CASPIAN and ensure access for his big-time billionaire supporters who wanted to give AMERICA A FACE LIFT!…They got it! but they’;lll need a body transplant the way this TeleMoron is going!
OBAMA = BUSH (the other side of the Coin of Macho-Stupidity, Arrogance and INCOMPETENCE
Actually Texas is a STATE…
If people won’t willingly adore and worship 0zero — then he’ll try to force mass obedience to “his way”.
And we don’t know what “his way” is. But we are getting clues by his actions — not his words.
We practically shouted from the rooftops that Obama would adopt the same Bush policy. It was clear why he voted for the FISA bill, but the mindless Obama followers defended their hero saying that he would use magical loopholes in the bill when he’s president because only he, the constitutional lawyer, knows how to control the power of the bill. Of course, somehow they also blamed Hillary Clinton for voting it against. Obviously, she was just trying to embarrass her competitor, so it’s also her fault! And don’t forget the mean Republicans were going to call him weak on terrorism if he voted against it, so he had to cower to the right in order to win!!
It makes me sick that there’s so much unconditional support for the guy, even when day after day, he has resembled George Bush, another thing the followers did not want to see when we shouted from the roof tops that he was just another Bush in Democrat’s skin. What’s worse is that at least Bush was upfront about what he was doing and believed it was necessary, although I disagreed with it 100%. Obama, sneaky as always, is trying to play both sides — pretending to uphold the values of the Constitution while adopting the same Bush policy that undermines it!
If Obama supporters think these policies are good and necessary for national security, then they must admit they overstated with President Bush because the same people who were FURIOUS with President Bush for these policies are now defending President Obama for adopting the same policy.
James
Great post! Perhaps this is the Dawning of the Age of the Death of Political Party system…
Any system that disqualifies the more competent candidate and pushes her off hte stage to allow this moronic neophyte with the anorexic resume to grab the Top Job….There’ll be hell to pay for giving America an “OBAMA FACE LIFT”–that was the intention of the big oil interests that supported and pushed Obama. He can be manipulated and they knew that! Hillary was like a rock….
HILLARY 2012
OBAMA = BUSH III CARTER II
Someone I knew went “Gay for Olbermann” during the election because he seriously loved the Obama love fest conducted nightly there. Well, I certainly hope he’s still “gay for Olbermann” now so he can see the truth, albeit much, much too late.
We could have had Hillary.
We could have had McCain.
We could have had honor.
I’m so disappointed in my fellow Americans. When things get as bad as I think they will, I will only help the people that I know voted against the fraud. Everyone else? Suffer alone.
It will get to the point where even the most Kool-Aid addicted freak will repent for the ridiculous Fraud vote. Then it’s time for us to put the “Don’t Blame Me, I Voted For McCain” bumper stickers on our cars. I’ve got mine all ready to go.
“We could have had Hillary.
We could have had McCain.
We could have had honor.”
Well said.
Corrupt politicians will never restore Constitutional rights because they use all this invasive spying to get the upper hand over their political opponents. That’s why we see the pols caving to evil candidates during election years.
So true, tek.
Keith Olberman? He of the Obama worship and Hillary hatred? Alert the media! Oh wait…..
I’mFedUp
Kudos to your posts! BO is the anti-American President. This man is a total con artist. He makes the crimes of Bernie Madoff pale in comparison.
Thank you EWard…Yes he is the 100% America Hating, Anti-American President. It makes me puke. He can’t get the hell out of the White House soon enough. I can’t believe there are people out there who still support the moron.
if the election were held today, does anyone think 0bama would win? i doubt it since so many are now disillusioned with this fake.
I don’t know whether this will make any of you feel better… and I know this is only anecdotal evidence but… for the last few weeks, in school, my students have been more receptive to my ‘disparaging’ remarks about BO. Then, today, when one of my students shouted, “Obama won,” I replied, “Won what?” and began a dialogue. Well, by the time I was finished, I had exposed not only the fallacy of his HI BC but also, pointing to the lesson of governmental separation of powers, explained BO can bypass the Congress by claiming “economic state of emergency.” (I also pointed out that he pushed through a bailout bill on Friday to sign on Tuesday.) By the time I was finished, the whole class, to a person, was listening in stunned silence.
Hope you dont get called to the office by some irate parents…
Politics and Religion can really screw up a teaching job.
No personal judgement implied, but I would be one mad-as-hell parent if I came to believe a teacher was pushing a particular political view from either side of the divide. I’d want my kids to be taught how to think, not specifically what to think. A few highly polarized parents on the opposite side of the equation could really cause trouble for you. Kids talk, and there are certainly some highly polarized parents.
By pointing out facts? God forbid a professor should point out facts.
Obviously a sign of political indoctrination.
As a parent I would be upset if the professor made up things. But pointing out the facts irrespective of political stripe is not indoctrination.
Sorry professors. Worship Barack Hussein Obama or lose your job. The same behavior exhibited by Bush supporters.
But the facts are not a political viewpoint…they have to know the facts before they can form an opinion, no?
The problem is that some “facts” are a matter of opinion and very heated debate. If a teacher were pushing “facts” from the point of view of a gung-ho Obama supporter, there would also be an obvious problem. I would say pretty much the same thing to anyone who might be doing that.
I’m no teacher. Were I, I might set out the political issues, the relevant bits of Constitution and law, and then encourage the kids themselves debate them. The kids learn to think for themselves, and their teacher is safe from partisan accusation.
But it is OK for you, a drenched-behind-the-ears obamabot and apologist to much more than a fault, to push your moronic blather to an extreme not seen here since your alter-ego, detractor and UKforDimbulbs did the same. I find your dogmatic posturing not only functionally illiterate from the standpoint of historical precedence but also from the standpoint of common sense. Your hero is nothing if more divisive than Dubya but you surly creatures couldn’t have HRC because she was *so* divisive, according to you. Now you ignorant boneheads have no one to blame but yourselves for the division that is set in concrete. Are you really so stupid in your own lack of understanding and inability to won up to your own naivete that you are completely oblivious to this fact? You bought the carpet-bagger’s promises; he is failing to deliver; and you are blaming us. What a meaningless life you must have, bot. I am certainly happy that I am not you, a lackey and water-carrier for a useless POS named That One.
Finally, you really either need to get a new sermon, learn to be consistent, or go back to your skid-row street-corner preaching. Your current gig is a losing proposition.
So why are you here incessantly telling us what to think, 10-watter? You, like your False Messiah, pull crap from your rectal orifice which isn’t fit for the human nostrils but you go on as though it were actually a good thing that you were posting it and that it actually has some sort of aromatic quality that only people like you can acknowledge. Well, I’m here to tell you, the stink of crap is just that-crap in the vicinity.
Christ, little man-thing, there are plenty of sites on the web that you can frequent to post your childish gibberish to a more-than-adoring crowd. Not so much here, because we see you for the naive little boy/girl/it you truly are.
In lieu of responding, why don’t you beat a hasty exit? But before you do, may I add, SHUT UP.
I’m not telling anybody what to think. I’m telling people what I think. I’m just another person who has opinions.
That supposes that you, an obamabot with a complete lack of discernment, has an opinion worth listening to. You don’t and I’m not.
Zippy you are paid for your opinions and they’re not the most genius. Sorry, but you know you’re not going to get a ton of people gushing over you talking about food supply when the issue is nuclear warfare.
Yeah, well, Zippy…remember how many kids, even little kids, got harassed if they raised their hands and said they would have voted for McCain? Remember the videos? Remember the kids who got sent home from school for wearing McCain/Palin T-Shirts? I KNOW one of those kids. There has never been bigger lies, bias and BS than from the morons, frauds, thugs, crooks and abusers on the Obama side. So don’t tell us that parents should be mad that someone has the guts, dignity and courage to stand up for the TRUTH and the amazing criminal con job done on this country by O-Bomb.
I know this is going to get me in trouble but . . .I agree with ziggy. I think it depends on what grade level you’re speaking about. At a university level then provocative discussion points should certainly be batted around. As long as the discussion is open to a wide range of views. That’s what universities are all about [or should be]–freewheeling exploration and discussion. The teacher’s job is not to indoctrinate; his/her job is to open discussion, debate and provide information.
At a younger age group, HS and below I certainly do not want my teachers preaching a particular political viewpoint. That’s abusing the position. Ziggy’s right: the job of the teacher is to foster a student’s ability to think for himself/herself and make rational and reasoned arguments. Everyone has personal opinions and viewpoints but when teaching in a public school there’s a fine line that should never be crossed–foisting your views whether political, religious or morality-based ideas on your students.
As a parent, that’s my job, thank you very much! And if I want something different? I send my kid to a private school of my choice.
I was appalled that there were teachers preaching to grade school kids on Obama’s superior qualifications during the GE, embarrassing kids whose parents supported John McCain. That’s wrong.
Reverse the argument. It’s still wrong.
Zippy is an obamabot who will say anything to pander to us while at the same time giving the finger. His crap is recycled PowerPoint presentations from botCentral.
But Ferd, on this he’s right, regardless of who or what he is. We have to be willing to stand for what’s reasonable and on the right side of things, not simply swat away positions because we don’t like where they came from.
Otherwise, all discussion and debate becomes hopelessly partisan. And pointless.
He may be “correct” on this one but he doesn’t actually believe it for a minute any more than That One believed anything he was saying during the run-up to the election.
I don’t buy crap from carpet-baggers, irrespective of their view because it all goes back to motive for me. His isn’t exactly above board.
Oh for the love of God…why on earth would anyone listen to that paid Obutt Zippy?
I think we are missing the point. Our teacher here, simply pointed out a few things as a teaching lesson, hoping to open the minds of the students, and hopefully, helping them to look at both sides. My daughter is a sixth grade teacher and the kids are interested in politics. It is her job to teach, so what is wrong with pointing out the need for separation of powers? I fear more the teacher who is so in love with Obama, they fail to present another side, the benefits of our constitution and all that it stands for. There was a reason the founding fathers set up three branches of government, and there is nothing wrong with bringing that to our student’s attention.
oh yea ziggy, were you ranting and raving about schools forcing students to watch BO’s inauguration?? Yea, that’s what I thought.
take care jbjd..we don’t want you to get in trouble..
Which I call the “Last Refuge of Scoundrels Act”, an anathema to a free society and a tacit acknowledgement by those who enacted it that they didn’t have an f-ing clue about what to do in this “brave new world” scenario. Neither the President nor the Congress was up to it. They caved to the “New World Order” scumbags, who are neither new nor particularly ordered.
And That One is even a bigger horse’s backside for not making an honest effort to bring about the “change” he so often blathered about during the run-up to the election. Nope, he’s just as big a yes-man as those who foisted this POS law on the American public. We need to bring back the stock and pillories for these traitors.
I had put a bumper sticker on my car during Bush’s presidency. It read “Anyone else for president”. I’m leaving it on for the duration of Obama’s term in office.
Good for you, Bill! I wish I had one of those, myself.
I live in the heart of Obamaland, so I dare not put that sentiment on my car….my kids drive it, after all, and I don’t want some crazed Obot running them off the road. But I sure can think it. And I left my Hillary yard sign up til Christmas.
If I had a Hillary sign….I’d put it out now LOL
Jule Z
You can still get a sign and other Hillary stuff from her “Hillary store.com”!!!Great key ring holders, T-shirts, buttons…if any left! Proud to display them any time anywhere!
Hillary 2012. Why not?
OBAMYOPIA will be cured by then….much earlier….
Barack - 2nd Term of Carter and 3rd Bush
….
Legally the house and senate leadership are informed. But Harmon and Pelosi and ried and Lott and and and. they all did nothing.
I am still pissed about BO calling “quaint” then Senator Hillary’s desire to change the AUMF. I knew then this fool is an IGIT. This is the lynch pin of the Iraq, Afganistan and the GWOT.
Gross Whishy-washy OBAMA trash.
Two options. Bush did not inform anyone. A crime.
BO did not inform anyone.
A crime.
As Joni Mitchel said, “you don’t know what you got till it’s gone.”
One fine peice of writting SusanUnPC.
What is an OBot Alex?
[...] No Quarters [...]
Obots don’t really give a chit about anyone’s civil rights. It’s all about one-upping ‘lunatic right-wing fringe groups’ in their little minds. If you aren’t with Obama, you belong to that group, you see.
They don’t even acknowledge anyone not belonging to either party.
The supportors are still waiting for there rent to be paid and a check for gas and food…….
I’m with you ImFedup… It isn’t about ‘party’ nor is blaming or trying to rationalise everything by looking at it thru “blame the Bush game”. This is ABOUT THE PRESENT. …yes, history teaches us. And one thing it teaches is to not repeat nor DWELL on it… The Dems are not perfect or ‘correct’ and pissing on all things GOP just proves it.
No, it isn’t about “party” anymore. For one thing, there is NO Democratic Party. That ended in the primary with Hillary. I might have registered GOP this year, for the first time, but I can’t imagine anyone being proud to call themselves a member of the party that screwed Hillary, brought us Obama in the first place, and continues to strip us of any Constitutional rights we might have had left. Too late to blame Bush for that.
‘Party’ has become too cult-like and people miss the point of issues cause they are so obcessed with what “party” said or did it! No I won;t join the GOP, nor will I blindly follow the Dems… After what they did to Hillary and allowed to be done to Palin, I’ll have no part of any party.
I’m FED UP, TOO!
Agreed 100%. How can anyone be proud of hte Party that vilified Hillary, together with the media sexist “leg-thrillers” like Olbermann who are only now seeing the light!…Obamyopia is a dangerous affliction…Who will cure it….?
There was time not too long ago when a small group of men from another country were allowed to easily come into the U.S., live in the U.S., train to fly jumbo jets at a licensed U.S. flight training school, easily access bank accounts, board an airplane just like any other citizen and only with a small box cutter. We already had an established enemy that we were too complacent over. And because we were so complacent about border security and airline security 3,000 citizens were slaughtered on one day.
The purpose of a central government from the outset was to provide security for the other 13 states from foreign enemies. The response to the attack on 9/11 was to secure a nation from threats we knew almost nothing about and had done nothing about for too many years.
It is easy to sit in a living room pontificating about the idea of civil rights and recklessly casting aside the benefits of The Patriot Act after 7 years of safety in the U.S. with no other incidents.
I don’t have a lot of tolerance for people who complain about the security measures the government has taken following 9/11 and then have no sound ideas of their own how to do a better job of keeping people safe here from foreign enemies. I think we have already seen that bowing to allies and enemies does not get you any respect in return and makes you look weak and more vulnerable to enemies.
I have yet to meet someone whose rights have been violated by elements the Patriot Act. I would look forward to hearing a story about people who had their rights violated as a result of The Patriot Act and then sued the government.
As you are right now.
I served, termo, and I am dead-set against ANY violations of the Constitution, irrespective of reason. The document was written with a purpose in mind and it wasn’t to keep you mamby-pambies safe and tucked in at night. You want safety, lock yourself up. I’ll keep my freedoms, thank you and defend them, when necessary. These boogie-men are no worse than any we’ve fought before and they won’t be the last. Get used to it.
no way. live free or die.
Was there someone who didn’t know that Obie was going to increase the already increased executive powers? That was the Obama Democrats’ game all along. No politicians in this country want a democracy anymore and they have learned how to manipulate the people to prevent democracy from happening.
President Obama is in a very difficult position. He is already accused by the former Vice President of making the nation less safe. This, of course, is a no lose assertion for Cheney. How can you prove a negative? IF/when we are hit again, he gets to say, “I told you so,” and Obama is dead meat or at least loses 25 of his 69 points of approval or more. If nothing happens, well, it will in time. The rest of the choir is doing their thing, too. Obama is like a high wire artist walking the Grand Canyon without any safety device. He has to prove himself with each step and ONE misstep is all it takes for him to crash and burn.
Obama has shown NO interest in pursuing investigation into violations of American and international law manifested by the torture that was perpetrated FROM the top. My own view is that unless we investigate, indict, and try those responsible for the torture, our flag remains soiled. But, I also see Obama’s plight. If he initiates investigation, he is subject to the accusation that he has politicized the situation. Of course, NO American in a position of authority has EVER been prosecuted for torture. That only happens in banana republics. What to do? If law suits are allowed to proceed forward, it seems inevitable that more an more pressure will be put on the administration to proceed against members of the last administration. It may be that is a factor in Obama arguing that the government cannot be sued. It may be that these cases will reach the Supreme Court and even though it remains quite possible that the Court, in its present configuration, will uphold that argument…..just maybe it won’t.
Having said that, I am not happy with the arguments put forth by the administration. I am equally unhappy with a bill presently making its way through Congress that would give the President the power to shut down the Internet in the event of an emergency.
Gug
Better to have a soiled flag than none at all..
Yeah lets go ahead and investigate…National Suicide!!
The democrats will face extinction if we ever have the show trials you desire and we have an attack on our country again.
Just think how the mob will turn against those foolish enough to dismantle the terror shield and through our perceived weakness are attacked.
My prediction is that Obama and his minions are the Neville Chamberlin’s of our day and will be the ones that face prison if Americans die.
If we are attacked again the democrats will be punished by the fascist republican backlash that
will rise out of fear and anger that the US had elected wimps who believed that just being nice and apologizing stops attacks on our nation.
That will be when we remember Cheney’s dire words and realize that the villains that kept us safe since 911 were actually the hero’s.
If we don’t investigate, then the Constitution becomes only “that piece of paper” (Shrub Administration) and just another “flawed document” (Oblahblah).
Sorry, Seattle, but if our country can’t undergo a little self-evaluation now and again for criminal or un-Constitutional activity by those we put in positions of responsibility, then we don’t deserve the “Beacon-of-Liberty” mantle any longer and the blood of true patriots will have been wasted. If the Constitution is worth fighting and dying for, then it is also worth following to the letter and saving. We need to go after the god damn terrorists and stop violating the Constitution (which I swore to uphold and defend and continue to so do) and stop punishing the citizens of the United States of America because of the acts of others outside our borders.
Screw the terrorists. They aren’t nearly as virulent as the Nazis were and we relegated them to the ash heap of history.
The Nazi’s were a nation…
The terrorist’s are ghosts that belong to no nation and abide by no laws of man.
This is a different kind of threat. Now that weapons mass destruction are close to being available we need to double down to make sure that a civilization ending attack doesn’t occur.
At any rate if we are attacked again all views will once again change to the paramount concern of safety at any cost.
History shows that those that fail to recognize their enemies and fail to counter the real threat end up the losers.
I don’t see anybody talking about how great the Greeks were with their philosophy only that they were defeated by the Romans and relegated to the dust bin of history.
The American people wanted safety at any price after 911 and at that time we had no idea of the number of terror cells out there.
The fact that Sheik Khalid was waterboarded doesn’t bother me at all considering he was responsible for 3000 dead and 50000 affected by poison air and a loss of a trillion dollars that we are still being affected by today.
Obviously liberty doesn’t matter to our new leaders as they continue to claim that Iraq was a mistake even though the Iraqi people are becoming freer with every given day.
Those who sacrifice liberty in the pursuit of safety deserve neither. If one desires to be completely safe, they should present themselves to the nearest Constabulary for incarceration.
I recognize the enemies and they are formidable but the enemies within who would sacrifice our hard-fought, blood-soaked liberties are even more so. Moreover, the terrorists win by our own violation of our Constitution. They got what they wanted; we lose.
F— the terrorists.
Our cowering, as displayed by our own dismantling of the greatest document ever written by man (not talking about the Bible, here), has not gone unnoticed by these same terrorists.
Better we stand as a free Republic than to let the scoundrels dictate, by their actions, how we respond. We’ve had this discussion a few times, Seattle and you still haven’t responded to my original question which was, “If these terrorists are so potent and our situation so dire, why haven’t we done the most responsible thing and sealed the borders? Invading Iraq did nothing that a sealing of the borders wouldn’t have done and with less expense and loss of life. If we are so vulnerable, then we need to close up shop with respect to border crossings. If businesses don’t get their cheap labor–too bad, this is a crisis, after all.
I don’t think we’ve reached that point, yet. In fact, I think the terrorist thing, while virile, is not omnipotent. We need to keep our heads and our liberties and go after the real enemy and stop the attack on the Constitution.
Ferd my good buddy.
We can agree on closing the borders. My only concern is for the environmental disaster this would represent to the animals that depend on migration to survive.
The reason this border wasn’t sealed earlier is that our country was able to compete with cheap slave labor in the orient.
Now China’s exports are dropping and they will be forced to import like the rest of us.
As for the illegals..They are going home because of the regulations,hostile backlash and the lack of work.
I’m more concerned with Canada than Mexico.
Every month I’m in Canada and what I see are the dregs that couldn’t get into the United States.
The Muslim’s are taking over just like in Europe and that is where we will find the future sleep cells.
As for the constitution my concern is the death of individual liberties and the rise of the Statist who has control over every aspect of our existence. Without being tough we will not continue to exist and the constitution will be in a museum in some Muslim country.
I concur, Seattle. It is a difficult situation that requires all of us to take a step back and re-evaluate the situation, including me. I so worry about safety but also about our debt to those who came before us and what they would think about our actions.
Ferd,
The difference between today and yesterday is that we live in the age of instant media via cell phone,internet and digital.
Those that came before us were brutal in their genocide against those that were not like them.
Maybe media may be the mechanism for ending all wars..
SM–Jane Mayer says in the link I’ve posted below that torture, non-torture, any method the Bush Adm. used, produced 90% crap.
I’m against torture.
Ferd says
What I have realized in my travels and I have known many important Arabs in the oil industry is that they only respect brute strength.
For the past 8 years we have shown the world that if you mess with us were coming to get you.
The terrorists have been running scared and I’m sure were surprised to find that America wasn’t the Carter type of country that they dealt with in 1979.
As for torture folks..I’m against it like everyone else and was originally against the Iraq war.
Conditions have changed and I now believe going forward that the Iraq war is a brilliant strategy for protecting American interests in the world and showing everyone that we mean business.
Obama secretly gets it I hope and will not allow himself to be labeled the president that was defeated in Iraq and gave away America’s sphere of influence. The problem for Obama is that he is surrounded by wimps that fail to see the real threat and are prepared to punish america even if it kills us.
Somebody had to play bad guy sooner or later and Bush was that guy
Now maybe the threat is diminished but I hardly think so.
What the terrorists see now is a America apologizing to the world and having doubts about it’s position and on the verge of tearing itself apart with investigations
In fact the terrorists are laughing at us right now as we capitulate our position in the world and focus on what’s right.
Guess what..The terrorists don’t give a crap about the constitution as to them it’s always been a weak document
They only care about Islam, the Koran and sharia law.
I have no regrets for the actions we have carried out and hope Israel will take care of the Iranian problem soon.
As for other countries that have been timid against their Muslim population such as England and France…Civil war and genocide will be the future..Or living under Sharia Law.
SM, being tough and upholding the constitution are not mutually exclusive. i;m no wimp; i’m not afraid of terrorists, and i’m not willing to give up everything that makes america great in exchange for a false sense of security.
word, Ferd. live free or die.
I offer 2 links, one of Bruce Fein, a Constitutional scholar and the other one of Jane Mayer’s interview at “Bill Moyers Journal”:
Hearings on Limits of Executive Power–
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80IphtHrFzg
Jane Mayer’s interview by Bill Moyers–
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07252008/watch2.html
[...] This Fox News report, a video from Cavuto’s show, offers an excellent orverview of the DHS report that is new evidence that should have EVERY freedom-loving American deeply concerned about Obama’s shredding of the Bill of Rights: [...]
THANK YOU PHILIP GIRARDI!
Great post here that I’d like to see on first page of WashingPost, N.Y.Times (fat chance!) and CNN/MSNBC…
The Europeans are alredy raising same issues over Obama’s “newbie” ambitions and Totus Prez is the joke of France–where they do not speak Austrian either!
Yes, if Hillary wasn’t cheated of the primary votes by bussed in Chicagoans-now-Iowans and if the pseudo-Democratic Party did not cheat the competent real Democratic candidate from her run and pushed her off the stage prematurely to allow His Hopeness to reign supreme…..
Impeachment for this Fraudulent OBAMYOPIA!