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POPSThe Imperial Presidency Hat tip to wiccantexan at clipmarks When the Constitution was written, our Founding Fathers were very careful to include provisions that would prevent any one branch of the government from getting too much power and control, and thus becoming something more along the lines of a dictatorship. Robert Sheer writes - in an excellent editorial for "The Nation" magazine (reprinted by CBS, where is where I got the link) - that George W. Bush is exactly the kind of imperial president that the Founding Fathers were trying to avoid. There's a lot more, including how Eisenhower's concerns about a "military-industrial complex" are both part of what the Founding Fathers were trying to prevent (though they wouldn't have necessarily thought of it in those same terms) *and* what Bush's Imperial Presidency is trying to ensure develops - and why this is a bad thing. Go read it - it's not l
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POPSDeja Vu? ABC's " The Blotter " has an interesting article written by Richard Clark, the former White House Director of Counterterrorism, and held that post at the time of the 9/11 attacks. Recently, officials in the Bush Administration have been indicating that they are concerned that there might be plans for another major attack on an American target this summer. As noted in the introduction to the piece, Clark says these latest intelligence reports bear and eerie resemblance to those officials received in the summer 2001, " but also notes that while "the intelligence is of a high quality, but doesn't point to a specific date or target." Then question this is what do we do with this kind of information? I pray that current intelligence operators who think that this "chatter" may be indicative of another attack this summer are wrong - but I also hope that - just in case its not - the Bush admin will wake up, pull their heads out of their as
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POPSMultiple Choice Quiz: Our mission in Iraq is ____ ? Think Progress has a great post today going through each of the various explanations the administration has given regarding what our mission is Iraq is. Below, is a teaser of what the various stages of our "mission" have been, all of which Think Progress backs up with quotes. Even though I've been well aware of the shifting excuses, seeing them laid out like this really helps show just how mendacious this administration can be.
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POPSThe Pervision of Justice - Libby Style As the quotes from the editorial below note, by commuting Libby's sentence instead of pardoning him, Bush has created a perfect scenario for Libby - the possibility of a pardon being the carrot to keep him quiet and leaving the conviction intact so that he can continue his appeals, which means he can avoid testifying anywhere by claiming his 5th amendment rights. Had Bush outright pardoned him, Libby wouldn't face the possibility of his words potentially incriminating himself since he'd already been absolved of any criminal liability, and thus could be compelled to testify in further investigations - such as an investigation into Cheney's involvement in the CIA leak scandal. So, while the President tries to claim that he commuted Libby's sentence as a means of correcting what he thought was an injust sentence, the President has actually managed to thwart attempts to bring others involved in case to justice.
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POPSTalk about obstructing justice The chutzpah of the Bush Admin truly knows no bounds (which I realize isn't much of a revelation, but still can't be pointed out often enough!) Now, in addition to their recent refusal to hand over documents subpoenaed by Congress, the White House is telling former aids not to testify, even though they've been subpoenaed! The notes below refer to Sara Taylor, who is alleged to have potentially valuable information regarding the questionable firings of several US Attorneys, but according to Raw Story , Harriet Miers has also been instructed not to testify. In the letter (referenced in the clip below) from Neil Eggleston, Taylor's attorney, he notes that she is currently caught between the subpoena for her testimony from Congress and orders from the President not to testify. These contrary directions undoubtedly create a monumental clash between the executive and legislative branches of
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POPSUnder Bush, a New Age of Prepackaged Television News Fow News is the largest news organization in America and it's stories parallel White House ideologies. Scary combo. Most of the American public doesn't even realize news oranizations focus on stories of achievement and success in the Mideast to bolster support for the Bush Admn. policies.
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