Misc. Ramblings

There is a political truism that says if you need to announce news that you don't want people to know about, do it on a Friday afternoon/evening or Saturday morning. That way it will get "lost" in the Saturday newspaper editions, which few people read. Although there may be a large measure of cynacism in the saying, there is also, I believe, a kernel of truth.

Whether this is what happened I am not sure, but the most politically damaging report (so far) relating to President Bush's assertion that he can legally order secret wiretapping of US citizens without Congressional approval or judicial oversight was reported in this Saturday's editions .

The Congressional Research Service, issued a 44-page memorandum (380k PDF) that examines President Bush's claim that his secret order is fully supported by the Constitution and the laws of the United States. I quote, in full, the concluding paragraph:

From the foregoing analysis, it appears unlikely that a court would hold that Congress has expressly or impliedly authorized the NSA electronic surveillance operations here under discussion, and it would likewise appear that, to the extent that those surveillances fall within the definition of "electronic surveillance" within the meaning of FISA or any activity regulated under Title III, Congress intended to cover the entire field with these statutes. To the extent that the NSA activity is not permitted by some reading of Title III or FISA, it may represent an exercise of presidential power at its lowest ebb, in which case exclusive presidential control is sustainable only by "disabling Congress from acting upon the subject." While courts have generally accepted that the President has the power to conduct domestic electronic surveillance within the United States inside the constraints of the Fourth Amendment, no court has held squarely that the Constitution disables the Congress from endeavoring to set limits on that power. To the contrary, the Supreme Court has stated that Congress does indeed have power to regulate domestic surveillance,[142] and has not ruled on the extent to which Congress can act with respect to electronic surveillance to collect foreign intelligence information. Given such uncertainty, the Administration's legal justification, as presented in the summary analysis from the Office of Legislative Affairs, does not seem to be as well-grounded as the tenor of that letter suggests.

[142]United States v. United States District Court, 407 U.S. 297, 323-24 (1972).

The report is full of carefully chosen code words but the story between the lines is that, in the opinion of the report's authors, the President acted illegally and continues to act illegally. Indeed, that President Bush's acts are unconstitutional.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, it appears President Bush has committed and continues to commit acts that rise to the level impeachment. Yet, because Congress appears unwilling to hold the President accountable, the President is free to wantonly disregard the Constitution, US citizens, and Congress itself, while Congress does nothing.

In my opinion, this action on the part of the President and inaction on the part of Congress diminishes us all. Citizens must not let this stand. Those in Congress who are unwilling to act must be removed in the coming elections. This is not a partisan issue. I don't care if other Republicans replace the present ones as long as the replacements uphold and support the Constitution of these United States.

Otherwise, the over 200 years of blood, sweat, and tears that have been shed since the founding of this country will have been in vain and what we now have is a king - not a President, and subjects - not free citizens. And if that is the depths to which we fallen to, then we truly live in dark times.

Aloha!