Reply #6: Too late. Our constitution has been in breach. . .

[pat_k]

. . . since January 6th, 2001. On that day, Congress refused carry out their duty to count only legitimate electoral votes. They cut the American electorate out of the loop when they refused throw out the illegitimate Florida electors. They failed to "preserve the government" (see tag line).

On that day we kissed our constitutional democracy goodbye.

Since that date, bush and cheney have waged an unrelenting war on the Constitution. They have turned the USA into a war criminal nation that spies on its own citizens. We passed the intolerable threshold years ago. "More intolerable" is not a very meaningful concept.

If Members of Congress are refusing to stand up because they fear that Bush would invoke martial law, they can put their fears to rest. Bush and Cheney aren't kidding when they claim unlimited and absolute power to do "whatever" they deem necessary to "protect us." They have already suspended the Constitution. Under unitary authoritarian rule we effectively live under martial law. We may not have to be off the streets by curfew today, but "the decider" claims the power to arbitrarily declare a national curfew tomorrow.

Impeachment is the only means by which we can reassert our power and enforce the terms of our common contract. Anything less than impeachment is tolerating the intolerable.

By refusing to impeach -- whatever their reasons/excuses -- Members of Congress have created a national crisis graver than any natural disaster or social ill. It is bigger than any international crisis. By tolerating the intolerable, they are surrendering our capacity to recover from disaster with humanity, solve our common problems in ways that reflect our common values, and serve as a force for good in the world. When the good will of the American people is cut out of the loop, no peoples, not our fellow Americans, not other nations, can look to us for help.

Regarding the question "Does Bush have right to declare Martial law, dismiss Congress/Courts, if another 911?"

Of course not. But we can only enforce our collective will if enough of us know that We the People are the "deciders." It is up to us to judge whether an official is acting outside the bounds we intended. Impeachment is the means by which we enforce our judgments. When enough of us look at an official's act and conclude "That's intolerable," no expert "analysis" can overrule us. All that is required is the political will to impeach.

Unfortunately, too many of us have been deceived into believing that such questions can only be answered by "experts." They have been convinced by fascist propaganda that such questions are too complex for the likes of us commoners.

Arguments that constitutional authorities present can be a valuable resource if we remember a basic truth conveyed in the story of the "the emperor's new clothes." That is, that people "in the know" often fail to see the simplest realities. If an expert's conclusions are contrary to our vision of a True America, we should trust our own judgment. When the authorities invoke legal technicality and "complexity" that trumps reality, it is up to us to call "bullshit."

By any definition -- expert or common sense -- bush and cheney are outlaws. This latest dictate is just another manifestation of their fascist fantasy that they have unlimited and absolute power to violate our laws, spit on our Congress, and piss on the Constitution to "protect us."

Tragically, as long as the men and women we elected to the U.S. House and Senate refuse to impeach, they are handing bush and cheney cover. The WH need only point to their refusal to impeach as "evidence" that their claim to absolute power is legitimate. (Would Congress have taken impeachment "off the table" if we were shredding the Constitution?)