But is It Legal? But is it legal?

But is it legal?

Apparently the Bush administration signed an agreement with the Secret Service regarding the infamous White House logs, the same logs that were used to implicate former president Clinton in the Lewinski ‘affair’. MSNBC is reporting that during the Abramoff scandal the administration is saying that a memorandum was signed changing the status of the logs from agency records to presidential records making them out of bounds for the FOIA. I would question the legality of this action on three counts. First past practice has always said that these records are ‘public’ and obtainable under FOIA,
Being common practice could it be construed to be ‘common law’? Secondly, how can the agency being investigated change the status of records during an investigation? There is something fundamental wrong with this notion. They are being investigated for possible wrong doing and the investigated ‘agree’ to put their records out of reach of the public they serve. Logically this would be a disservice and ethically suspect. There is a strong suggestion of culpability. Lastly this ‘memorandum’ has just recently surfaced, when in fact did it originate? Its existence is being used to attempt to have a judges ruling overturned. This is problematic, where was the document when the case originally came up? How can the authenticity of this document be verified? Comments from the plaintiffs speak to the questionable nature of this posturing, One called it “a political maneuver couched as a legal one” while another says that, “It appears that the White House is actually manufacturing evidence to further its own agenda.” The White House response has been ‘no comment.’

If this was just an isolated incident one would be inclined to ‘let it slide’ but that is not the case. Stonewalling, lying, obfuscating has been the order of the day with the present administration. When will the authorities with the power to check the powers of the executive branch ‘stand up?’ You have been strangely absent as our constitution has been eviscerated by the hooligans loosely and incorrectly masquerading as ‘elected officials.’ The War on Terrorism is not the number one priority of America. The need to save our nation from a much closer enemy needs to be job one. America needs to be saved from the tyranny of the Bush/Cheney cabal.

Lest we forget let me review some of the more apparent transgressions, starting with the election of 2000. Why was the governor of Florida allowed to strip 57,000 citizens of their voting rights? Why did the Supreme Court step in and stop the recount? Clearly 4 of the 9 justices did not feel the move was proper. Why has this administration never adequately addressed the concerns of thousands of citizens who have lingering questions about 9/11? Why did the administration feel that it was necessary to curtail constitutional rights of citizens, in order to protect them? If they had been doing their job before 9/11 we would have been safe. Why after repeated warnings from other countries and our own FBI and CIA did they fail to adequately respond? Why did they outright lie in lock-step about why they chose to wage war with Iraq? Clearly the Downing Street Memo and the testimony of numerous government insiders show that the decision to go to war was made before Iraq was given adequate time to comply with any United Nations requests. It seems clear now that we knew, or at least parts of our government knew there were no WMD nor was their an attempt on the part of Iraq to obtain fissionable material from Niger as stated. There was no ‘nuclear’ threat from Iraq save in the minds of those committed to an unjust invasion of a sovereign nation. But we all remember the threat of a ‘smoking gun in the form of a mushroom cloud’ don’t we?
Are these harmless white lies meant to shelter the huddled masses from the harsh realities of a cruel world or something more? A survey of a few laws passed in the last 5 years may serve to illuminate a trail of obfuscation. A bankruptcy law was passed that makes it more difficult for the average American to declare and go through the bankruptcy process but the laws have not changed for corporations. A limit has been placed on the liability of corporations. Ostensibly to encourage companies to continue to research and develop vaccines without the fear of large law suits. But what if they knowingly market a dangerous product or in the rush to profit from a drug they fail to adequately test it? Where is the liability from willful acts?
We have been duped by fake news stories produced by the government and funded by tax payer money. This is supposed to be illegal but it continues. News has been managed, mangled and twisted, so as to be unintelligible. Information was being removed from the Library of Congress that had all ready been declassified and most likely redacted ad infinitum. Reporters have been threatened, censured and even fired for speaking the truth. Truth has become a relative term now days. Yesterday’s truth is today’s lie.
In a country that has prided itself on liberty and justice for all the majority work 50 to 60 hours a week just to make ends meet. The title of a recent New York Times article reads, “Tax Cuts Offer Most for Very Rich, Study Says.” This is just a recent example of entitlement programs that work in reverse. The elimination of the estate tax aka the death tax benefited 2% of the American population. The 2% that had more than a million dollars left to bequeath and the administration is dedicated to continue this upward flow of money from the have nots to haves. During this administration the disparity between the wealthy and financially challenged has reached epidemic proportions. Sadly this is not due to serendipity or synergy but rather to a well executed plan by government. As patriotic people we have tacitly agreed not to openly question the motives of the government. We have been instructed that far greater minds than ours are guiding the ship of state. I would propose to you that now are the time to demand answers and question the very core values of the corporatocracy that is the United State government.
In Professor Ismal Hossein-zadeh’s article “Why the US is not Leaving Iraq” he details a virtual bazaar of US companies lining up and gorging themselves on the largess of American tax payer’s dollars in Iraq. You know the names and have heard the stories, Halliburton/KBR the recipient of billions through no-bid contracts routed through their former CEO’s office, who now serves as the Vice President. The uses of cost + contacts that encourage wastefulness so the final bill can be inflated to further impoverish the workers of America are the norm. We are told they are rebuilding Iraq but there is less electricity being generated and less oil being pumped now than before the invasion. As if this is not enough the people whose duty it is to make sure America gets its rightful due from these contractors are being undermined and removed from their position by the very government they are attempting to protect. Apparently our government does not want an accounting and reconciling of the books. But why, aren’t they sworn to protect and uphold the laws of the land? Perhaps it is because they own shares or have options from the very corporations they are called upon to keep ‘honest.’ Methinks that is at least a conflict of interest and perhaps criminal. I would like to call for an unbiased accounting of the increases of all top government officials portfolios over the last 5 years and moratorium on government officials taking jobs with corporations that they were charged with overseeing. This revolving door policy is unseemly at best and often blight on the record of politicians in general. Is there any wonder why Americans are giving up on politics in disgust?

To adequately cover the transgressions of the Bush/Cheney group would require a book. A book I would very much like to write but I am too busy working two jobs, trying to put two children through college and attempting to ‘manage’ my life. Despite the fact that many American leaders have shunned the American people I still have faith in the American Dream. A dream where all citizens are worthy. A dream that allows the worker to keep enough of his hard earned wages to live a decent life. A dream where the rights of the many are not sacrificed for the transgressions of the few. A dream where all people are treated equally under the law. Yes I am a dreamer but in order to believe something it must first be conceived. And the simple act of conceiving a just America is becoming harder everyday. I beg your pardon President Bush and Vice-President Cheney but Americans are not as shallow and mindless as you believe. Your power to rule is based on the consent of the people and your days of ruling are numbered. You have egregiously betrayed the trust we the people placed in you. You have become tyrannical and it is the right of the people, actually the duty, to remove you. You see you are not America and you no longer represent American values, you have been pretenders. It’s time for you to be replaced with a genuine American leader with real American values and if one is not available God help us all.

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