We've Got the Grounds...
...now all we need is the spine.
Sam Newland, a retired journalist living in Minneapolis, wrote an absolutely brilliant column in today's Minneapolis Star Tribune. In this piece, he suggests that the impeachment of George W. Bush be cast in the same language and framework as the Declaration of Independence, spelling out the bill of particulars which constitute our grievances.
Get comfortable: the list is long.
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.
I find it fascinating that a journalist, albeit a retired one, has written this document. I find it heartening that a major metropolitan newspaper, one in the "heartland" had the courage to print it.
I have emailed Mr. Newland's article to both of my Senators and to my Representative. I urge you to do likewise.
Sam Newland, a retired journalist living in Minneapolis, wrote an absolutely brilliant column in today's Minneapolis Star Tribune. In this piece, he suggests that the impeachment of George W. Bush be cast in the same language and framework as the Declaration of Independence, spelling out the bill of particulars which constitute our grievances.
Get comfortable: the list is long.
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.
I find it fascinating that a journalist, albeit a retired one, has written this document. I find it heartening that a major metropolitan newspaper, one in the "heartland" had the courage to print it.
I have emailed Mr. Newland's article to both of my Senators and to my Representative. I urge you to do likewise.
posted by Diane at 8:32 AM
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