The office of President of the United States of America is a powerful position, a large undertaking, and should not be entered into lightly. This person, when elected. is the leader of the largest free country in the world. By the consent of the governed, he is trusted to lead, conduct business, and defend the rights of those he leads, the population of the United States. This person, therefore, should be a bright and shining example to the world of the true spirit of our great nation. As he is in a position of immense power, he should be above reproach, trustworthy, honest and true to the people who elected him to office. The President of the United States of America should have the best interests of the people and the nation in mind as he goes about the duties to which he is sworn.
Our Founding Fathers, when considering what our leader should do, laid it out for him exactly in our Constitution. While Congress will be responsible for making laws and the Judicial Court is responsible for interpreting those laws, our President is responsible for executing said laws. All past and future Presidents, as well as our current one, upon taking office, must affirm to:
“…faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.” (1)
The very words “defend the Constitution” come to mind when thinking of President Bush. Never, in the history of the United States of America, has one elected official abused his power so flagrantly. According to news articles written in 2006 by Charlie Savage (2) and Ann Woolner (3), our President has issued signing statements for over 800 laws, making it clear that he feels he “has the power to set aside any statute passed by Congress when it conflicts with his interpretation of the Constitution.” All other Presidents combined have queried approximately 600 laws. By his own signing statements, President Bush has taken the liberty of deciding he can ignore the very Constitution he swore to preserve, protect, and defend.
According to the two afore mentioned articles, President Bush has led the Congress to believe he would adhere to the laws they approve. According to political professor Christopher Kelley, Bush has the lawmakers present during the signing ceremonies, only to later file signing statements, many times without the knowledge of Congress or the population he serves, that basically claim he can ignore the laws (4). Some of the reasons he feels he is above the law are his own interpretation of the Constitution, his position as commander-in-chief, and at his discretion, he could decide what he feels he should reveal to or withhold from Congress. His heinous attitude smacks of an arrogance of one who thinks he is a dictator, rather than an elected official trusted to uphold Constitutional Law.
It is should be very clear that President Bush, by using eight-hundred-plus signing statements, has usurped the duties of the Judicial Branch of government, and by stating the he can ignore the laws passed by Congress, has seized its power, as well. Former Representative Cynthia McKinney and Current Representative John Conyers have worked toward having President Bush impeached. McKinney went so far as to draft Articles of Impeachment (5) that not only implicate President Bush, but Vice President Cheney and Secretary of State Rice, for wrong doings and misrepresentation of the facts, only for these articles to appear to be ignored by the current Democratic House Majority. Nearly two years ago, Conyers and staff wrote the report “George W. Bush v The U. S. Constitution” (6) after President Bush ignored repeated requests for answers to questions about the accuracy of the Downing Street Minutes.
“…By sacrificing human life to serve their radical visions, by abandoning every value except the will to power, they follow in the path of Fascism, Nazism, and Totalitarianism and they will follow that path all the way to where it ends…” (7)
This particular quote from a speech given by President Bush should sends chills down the spines of U. S. Citizens, many of whom are “Christians” and many of whom are being asked to send their parents, sons and daughters to fight and kill in a “war on terror” based on a collection of lies. The human lives being sacrificed and the will to power are, theoretically, those of the terrorist that are allegedly trying to grab power from the United States. Does any red blooded U.S. citizen really believe that a hand full of guys hijacking a few planes, crashing them into three “landmarks,” and killing three thousand-ish people, are really making a grab for power in the United States of America? If some foreign group were truly trying to make a grab for power, wouldn’t they have continued their assault on our precious “landmarks” until we either had an all out war, or we surrendered to save our country?
“I fully understand they could try and stop me…But I’ve made my decision, and we’re going forward.” (8)
There is a grab for power going on, but the “grabber” is not who you think. The recently released documentary, “One Nation Under Siege (9),” points out from where the grab for power is coming and how the USA PATRIOT Act is helping in that endeavor. The “grabber” is President George W. Bush. While there seems to be growing support from U.S. citizens and all political parties in pursuit of exactly why we are still conducting this illegal war on Iraq (Constitutionally, only the Congress can declare war, which they did not), we are still anticipating our elected officials response to the many outcries for accountability for the atrocities committed by the current administration. The loss of life during this non-war is reprehensible. The conditions our sons, daughters, and parents fighting this war for a “civilized” nation are being asked to face is disgraceful. What’s worse, when they do finally get to return home, the likelihood of rampant diseases and illnesses are most assured, as we experienced during Gulf War I.
So, we ask the question again, where, in all this, does the current administration’s accountability lie? With President Bush’s I’ll-do-what-I-want-Congress-be-damned attitude, Republican Senator Chuck Hagel states, “…there are ways to deal with that,” (10) implying, again, that Bush can be impeached. The Articles of Impeachment have been drawn up. What are our elected representatives waiting for? The longer they wait, the more of a dictator Bush becomes. Eight-hundred-plus signing statements, which are relying on his ”interpretation of the Constitution,” are seeing to that. Will the elected representatives of these United States stand up, take control of this situation and get it corrected? Every one of us has the obligation to call for action, get off the couch and get involved. Write your representatives. Make them aware of your desires. Hold them accountable for their elected positions.
Endnotes:
(1) The Constitution of the United States of America Article II Section 1
(2)
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2006/04/30/bush_challenges_hundreds_of_laws/ Bush challenges hundreds of laws…, Charlie Savage
(3)
http://zzpat.bravehost.com/july_2006/who_needs_congress_or_courts_with_bush_in_charge.html Who Needs Congress or Courts With Bush in Charge? Ann Woolner
(4)
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2006/04/30/bush_challenges_hundreds_of_laws/ Bush challenges hundreds of laws…, Charlie Savage
(5)
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=hr109-1106 H. Res. 1106 [109th]: Articles of Impeachment against George Walker Bush, President of the United State…
(6)
http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/2868/ George W Bush v The U.S. Constitution
(7)
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010920-8.html “Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People” September 20, 2001
(8)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16624979/ Bush says opposition won’t shift his Iraq policy, Associated Press
(9) www.takebackwashington.com
(10)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17786158/ GOP’s Hagel calls Bush Impeachment an option, Associated Press