Time For a Bill of Particulars on Another George
When in the course of human events there's impeachment talk, the style
of the Declaration of Independence could set the tone
by Sam Newlund
On July 4, 1776, a rebellious group of colonists adopted America's
historic Declaration of Independence, lambasting England's King George III
for "a long train of abuses and usurpations." One by one they succinctly
listed the offenses, such as:
"He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and
destroyed the lives of our people." Twenty-six other charges made the list.
That was nearly 230 years ago. Now it's time for a bill of particulars
on another George -- President George W. Bush. Items ripe for this list have
been rolling out with numbing consistency since he took office just over
five years ago. Impeachment is now openly discussed.
Many of Bush's "abuses and usurpations" concern the Iraq war:
. He has used false information that Saddam Hussein had weapons of
mass destruction that threatened a mushroom cloud over this country as a
reason for invading Iraq. (The war so far has killed more than 2,300
Americans; estimates of the Iraqi death toll vary wildly -- up to 100,000 or
more, including women and children.)
. He has ignored most of our allies (the British are an exception)
in starting this war, and turned admiration and friendship for America
throughout the world to anger and disrespect.
. He has subverted law and the Constitution, eavesdropping on
thousands of Americans in search of Al-Qaida terrorists. Many have been
imprisoned without warrants, charges or attorneys and denied the right to
challenge their detention in court.
. He has insisted that America does not torture prisoners, but
photos taken at Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad, plus other evidence, have
proved otherwise. He has claimed that rules against torture contained in the
Geneva Conventions don't apply to many detainees.
. He has had people kidnapped, shackled and flown to dungeons in
foreign countries that are known to practice torture, calling this scheme
"extraordinary rendition."
. He has tried to subvert a Senate amendment designed to prohibit
torture. First he vowed to veto it, then signed it when it was clear a veto
would be overridden. But he attached a "signing statement" saying, in
effect, that if necessary he would act as he pleased.
. He has sent American troops to war, at least until recently,
without adequate body armor and protective shields for their vehicles.
. He has ignored advice from military experts that he sent far fewer
troops to Iraq than needed.
. He has failed to plan adequately for managing the country once
Saddam was toppled. Nor has he settled on an exit strategy.
Besides Iraq:
. He has pushed a series of tax cuts that give lopsided benefits to
the rich, worsen the budget shortfall and shift the burden of deficits to
our children and grandchildren. Last week the Senate voted to raise the debt
limit to nearly $9 trillion, almost $3 trillion of which has been enacted
under Bush.
. He has tried to begin "privatizing" Social Security (Congress has
yet to approve) by allowing workers to divert some of their payroll taxes
into stocks and bonds. But because current payroll deductions support
current recipients, the diversion would create an immediate gap in the
Social Security funds that would have to be replaced. Borrowing the
replacement dollars would further bloat the national debt.
. He has pandered to the religious right, promoting its views on
issues like abortion, contraception, sex education, same-sex marriage and
"faith-based initiatives."
. He has severely restricted the use of federal dollars for
stem-cell research that could lead to cures for life-threatening diseases
like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
. He has fostered an obsession with secrecy, more than any other
recent president. He has weakened the Freedom of Information Act, making it
harder for private citizens and journalists to learn what their government
is doing
. He has expanded the use of "executive privilege" to deny
information to Congress, magnified claims of national security as an excuse
for secrecy, and generally stonewalled requests for information.
. He has fallen far short of providing timely aid to New Orleans and
other Gulf Coast communities struggling to overcome the devastation of
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita six months ago.
. He has abandoned the 1997 Kyoto treaty to reduce global warming by
cutting emissions of greenhouse gases, although the United States is the
prime source of those gases. Ignoring science, he has claimed global warming
is not fully proven.
. He has continued an energy policy relying heavily on oil, mostly
from the Middle East. (But Congress has balked at drilling in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.)
These facts point to a backward slide in this country from a free and
open society where nobody -- not even the president -- is above the law.
Where the well-being of all trumps the wishes of politicians or special
interests. Where scientific inquiry is unpolluted by politics or ideology,
and public business is done in public. Where nobody worries about
intercepted phone calls or stolen e-mail, and wars are fought out of
necessity, not out of hubris, nationalism, oil or anything else.
Sam Newlund is a retired journalist in Minneapolis.
© 2006 Star Tribune
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Once the Republican Taliban, controlled by Cheney/Rove/Frist is gone, Osama
bin Bush's impeachment is imminent.
Bush knows this and it's why he's been stumping through his Red States and
the Taliban sheep for support but ya know, Bush has fucked the sheep too
many times.
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