Ashcroft, state's rights. I'm sure there are other examples of abandoning
conservative principles, but that is the first one to jump into my head.
Of course one could argue that Ashcroft is not a true conservative,
and he probably can't play the bag pipes, either.
I've said this before but I think it bears repeating. There is probably no
politician in recent history who has been more openly hostile to states rights
than Ashcroft. He claims that it is one of his most stringent principles but
when has actually has to act on those principles he has, almost uniformly,
taken the side of greater federal power. The best examples were his voting for
the DOMA, his conduct during the passing of Oregon's "right-to-die" law, his
enacting of greater powers for the DoJ without constitutional checks and
balances and his collaboration in the Slepian assassination, forcing New York
to drop their 1st degree murder charge against the terrorist so that he would
be tried under a lesser federal change, one which did not involved the death
penalty.
If supporting states rights is the mark of a conservative and attacking them is
the mark of a liberal then Ashcroft is probably one of the most extremist
liberals in government in the last twenty years.
Rich Goranson, Amherst, NY, USA (aa#MCMXCIX, a-vet#1)
EAC Ill-Legal Dept. "Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here"
"My country, right or wrong; to be defended when right and righted when wrong."
- Thomas Jefferson
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