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For
most of the last ten days the news from Washington has been punctuated by
the bizarre antics of Dick Cheney - the man that puts the 'Vice' in the US
presidency. History gave us all a lesson during the Nixon years and
Watergate, when the line between the laws and those who either make or
enforce those laws was re-emphasized. No one then was allowed to place
themselves above or beyond the law. That clock continues to tick: but
apparently a lot of people have forgotten that presidents are not gods (or
dictators), and that no president is or can ever be, allowed to remain
above the laws of this nation that they supposedly lead.
Cheney and his apologists have
been making a lot of noise about 'facts not in evidence,' concerning his
vices within his role is this government. The claims being made by both
Cheney and his invisible staff stretch credulity beyond the breaking
point. He is currently claiming that he has a legislative role, because of
his capacity as the tie-breaking vote in the Senate. According to the
Constitution that does not make the-Vice a part of the legislative branch
of government, anymore than it allows him to act as the White House Chief
of Staff, without that title being formally conferred.
As for all of Cheney's
"other functions" that have been 'given' to him by what has
become an "absent without leave president" who is unwilling or
unable to do those jobs that are his by virtue of his office. These
additional duties should have been challenged at every turn by oversight
committees of the Congress-but they gave themselves a semi-permanent
vacation after they gave Cheney-Bush that "License to Kill" that
enabled the unchecked Invasion of Iraq. Consequently not only has the
'Decider' been allowed to go berserk, but apparently Cheney has been
acting for Bush in so many different "official" capacities that
no one can tell where one man leaves off and the other begins. (1)
On first glace this seems
complex-but in reality if one returns to the basics, there can be no
confusion. There is only one president of the United States at a time. The
Vice-president is nothing but an empty suit in waiting whose only other
'official' task is to break tie votes in the Senate. Every other job that
is given to The-Vice should be delegated on the record and be transparent
enough that the public is aware of the duty thus delegated by the
president and approved by the congress!
However when all of this is done
in secret, even from the other cabinet officers within the government:
then questions arise. But no one officially questioned this steady stream
of new and dubious 'responsibilities' that The-Vice has given to himself. (2)
The Constitution was written, in
part, to give some order to the officers and responsibilities within the
government: its definitions and responsibilities cannot be changed without
written laws to the contrary. Yet both Cheney and Bush have placed
themselves above and beyond the laws that govern this Republic: and for
that just like Nixon, these two Outlaws must be held accountable. Nixon
was impeached - then allowed to resign - because too many others in
congress would have gone down with him, if his case had been tried before
the Senate. Perhaps the same is true today-maybe that's why
"Impeachment is off the table!" according to Nancy Pelosi?
One thing is extremely clear: The
current confusion over who is actually pulling the strings of this
government needs to be sorted out on the record and in public. On
Democracy Now today:
"White House
Subpoenaed for Domestic Spying Docs
The Senate Judiciary Committee
has issued subpoenas ordering the Bush administration to turn over key
documents on the National Security Agency program of spying on Americans
without court warrants. On Wednesday, subpoenas were delivered to the
offices of President Bush, Vice President Cheney, the national security
adviser and the Justice Department. The Judiciary Committee is seeking
internal discussions on the program's legality and the text of agreements
with telecommunications companies that have aided the spying.
Senate Judiciary Chair
Patrick Leahy: "We've had a consistent pattern of evasion and
misdirection. In some ways it would have been better if they just
ignored it. Instead they've evaded and they've tried misdirection. It's
unacceptable. It is stonewalling of the worse kind and I think the
reaction is spreading to both parties in the senate."
The subpoenas could set off a
new legal showdown with the White House, which has until July Eighteenth
to comply."
"Roll Call reports today
that President Bush has requested $4.75 million in fiscal 2008 to fund the
Vice President's operations (parts of which are housed, notably, in the
Executive Office Building.)" $4.75 million for a government position
that the constitution gives virtually no complex duties to, regardless of
this so-called state of war. . . In this light Mary Lyon asks us all:
"Are you Okay with this?" (3)
It's our money that is being
used; our people that are wearing the uniforms that are prosecuting the
wars of occupation, and our reputation that is being shredded in service
to completely unworkable policies the world over. Millions of people have
died; millions more have been displaced or mutilated in these unilateral
military actions that were created from nothing more than a huge pack of
deliberate and deceptive lies. Like it or not the facts on the ground
belong to us - just as according to Bush himself: 'He owns the Iraq War.'
It's way past time for both
Cheney & Bush to begin to pay for their actions, in public, and on the
record. These two must answer those subpoenas and appear before the
congress-and the public needs to keep the heat on the White House-to do
just that!
Jim Kirwan
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