Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) said today on ABC’s “This Week” that, if President Bush is found to have broken the law with respect to the secret NSA surveillance program, “impeachment is a remedy.”
Well, so it is! And the hearings on the NSA business, which begin in a couple of weeks, will be in Specter’s Judiciary Committee.
Realistically, I can’t imagine that much will come of this until the Democrats take back at least one house of Congress. Nonetheless, it’s nice to hear impeachment talk coming from the other side of the aisle.
Please share widely!
I expect that this is just the leading edge of a trend – it’s the Rethugs that are Bush’s biggest worry. Bush is currently an weighty and stinky albatross around the neck of each and every Rethug. If Rethug reelection prospects start to turn seriously south, I suspect that they’ll put Bush’s head on the chopping block.
<
p>
Bush staying in power is the sweetest dream of a Democrat running for office in a centrist state – it’ll be awful fun to compare Rethug opponents to an obviously evil and failed president.
<
p>
Also, if Bush is impeached, the line of succession is terrifying – Darth Cheney, Condi, and Ted Stevens. Scary stuff – I’m not sure if any Democrat wants to wade into that.
one would have to impeach Bush and Cheney together, since they’re undoubtedly both involved. Then House Speaker Denny Hastert becomes President – unless, by the time the Senate removed them from office (ha ha ha), the Dems have retaken Congress. Pelosi for President!
<
p>
I can dream, can’t I?
So many of us quickly forget 911 and the resultant devastation to this country,. Had it been a democratic president in office at this time, I suggest that those who critisize Bush the most would grant President Gore a pass today. His security experts would deal with eavesdropping identically the same way. This self rightious dog does not hunt for me.
<
p>
Give any intelligent person the responsibility of protecting 300,000,000 Americans from an invisible enemy ,he would utilize every tool at his disposal to push the authority envelope until it burst . None of us actually know what Bush’s intelligence experts are telling him, but we do know that we havn’t been hit since 911 , so he must be doing something right.
<
p>
Bush’s motives are not to line his pockets or for some other political motive. If we are so jaded to believe such nonsense it must be blind hatred for the man , because it does not make any political sense. American’s will never accept an impeachment of its protector for doing his job . Democrats never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity to ridicule themselves. Spector is doing a great job in setting the democrats up for the kill as he did in the SJC hearings….. and they are so blinded they can’t see the forest from the trees.
your confidence in Bush is … uh … admirable, I guess. But is it really so hard to go to the super-secret court, specifically set up for precisely this purpose, to get warrants for these searches? I mean, the court has rejected a grand total of 5 warrant applications out of the thousands it’s seen since it was set up, and (as everyone and his brother knows by now) if they need them immediately they can go ahead, as long as they go to the secret court within 3 days afterward. Not really that hard to comply with that, is it?
<
p>
Anyway, no one really thinks impeachment is a serious option. And I, for one, think that Specter is genuinely upset about the NSA spying program, not engaged in some double-secret plan to flummox the Dems again. But maybe I’m the naive one…
Don’t ever underestimate the political skill of Republicans to use reverse psychology for political purposes, especially when our Senator, a distinguished member of the Owl Club pontificates on the excesses of power.
<
p>
Republicans are savoring for the opportunity for Teddy to speak once again at another judiciary committee meeting.. I suggest that Senator Specter , a fine man, is also the wolf in sheep’s clothing. Remember, he delivered Roberts and Alioto for Bush. Bush will therefore allow him political cover to give him a genuine New York Times b–tch slap along with the rest of the concerned senators, As you say, impeachment is not a serious option.
Whether or not Specter is sincere is probably not as important as having it said at all. If we do not seek Impeachment, we are threatening our right to have a secure, meaningful Constitution.
<
p>
Figuring that my NSA file is probably already quite stuffed, I will chance my opinion here, to comment on two statements in this thread:
<
p>
“So many of us quickly forget 911 and the resultant devastation to this country…but we do know that we havn’t been hit since 911 , so he must be doing something right.”
<
p>
“Don’t ever underestimate the political skill of Republicans to use reverse psychology for political purposes”
<
p>
Having patiently waited for Democrats to finally find their elusive ‘backbone,’ it appears that we are now poised to stand tall. I suggest that we dust off our brains, and bombard the Internet with all of the ‘things’ we have conveniently forgotten, or, been too troubled to dare say in public.
<
p>
As far as Presidential Authority goes ‘in times of war’, I suggest that we define the validity and origins of the phrases used by the Bush White House to defend their usurping of our Constitution in regards to limitation of power and the stripping of our rights granted within it’s Articles.
<
p>
Are we truly at war? What about the “War on Terror?” Consider the possibility that this has largely been inflated through the spurious actions of a megalomaniacal body of Cheney-Rumsfeld led hawks in Washington aided by people like Hughes and Rove to keep their ‘need to know’ agenda in check. The WHIGS psyops tool has served them well. Even Bin Laden, in his very last statement to America(which was never released here in full)warned us to look closely at our own government to find the real truth; adding that America could easily be bled dry financially through our Actions alone.
<
p>
Next, what about our abiding citizens who so want to believe that justice is being served, that the events of the past five years have been necessary? They have been ‘guided’ through tactics such as fear.
<
p>
Consider the spread of fear, with ‘terror levels’ and statements such as “it’s not a matter of if, but, when.” Think of people we know that have truly become spooked. This is far worse than what was seen in the years of the ‘cold war.’ Far worse than Vietnam. Think of all the families who will never recover. They have effectively been destroyed. Others will follow in the wake. This is our greatest sin. What Constituional protections have been disallowed in this debacle?
<
p>
It is my determination that if the Democrats are finding their backbone, the awareness level of the American Public is about to do a 180 if the truth is forced to come out.
<
p>
As this unfolds, people will not be too happy to have had fear forced upon them. As the cloud of deception lifts, there are a good many Americans who will be abhorred at what comes to light. It will be seen that our country has been divided on purpose, that those of strong faith have been used, their deep religious leanings have been mocked–as tools for the personal agendas of an Administration that has needed the blinded backing of a ‘majority,’ even if that ‘majority’ has in truth also been inflated. Mocking dissenters and instituting a news-blackout has allowed the agenda to continue. Fear is a powerful tool. It is an Orwellian tactic that has led too many Americans to gladly give up freedom in order to be free.
<
p>
This amounts to treasonous acts. ANY ADMINISTRATION THAT FORCES SUCH ACTIONS UPON IT’S CITIZENS is willfully stripping them of their Constitutional rights. How dare they call US traitors if we ask questions, or dissent!
<
p>
I, for one, refuse to accept the statement that we are “at war.” No one ‘declared war’ on the United States. We are in Iraq solely because certain people, with the grand designs they helped to formulate many Administrations ago, KNEW they would have their ‘in’ with a Bush presidency. No one will EVER convince me that 9-11 took Washington by surprise. This is AS FAR AS I WILL GO HERE, yet, I suggest that people start truly educating themselves of the facts surrounding the origins of this ‘war on terror.’ Consider who we really should be fearing, then, consider why “we havn’t been hit since 911.”
<
p>
Google the chatter on the 22nd Amendment. Wonder how far presidential privilege is willing to go to keep their agenda on the table. DO NOT GIVE THEM THE CHANCE TO SHUT DOWN ANY MORE CITIES to ‘prove’ we are still targets, or, allow them to avert our attention from what’s REALLY going on. We must NOT delay.
<
p>
Consider what Syria and Iran means at this junction, as Iraq is no longer important to the Administration. Keep up with the news on which countries we are condemning, which ones we are courting, and ask yourself : “WHY?” Look for the news that cannot be blacked-out on the Internet.
<
p>
While you’re at it, find out what ‘depleted uranium’ really is. I apologize for suggesting this, for, it is the one topic I wish I was ignorant about.
<
p>
Considering the aforementioned ‘reverse’ psychological machinations of the current administration, realize that the only way to stop the machine is to gather up all the wrenches we can muster to throw at it from all sides, all angles, every minute of every day from here on in.
<
p>
Be good citizens. Let our reps know the time has come to take back America.!
You state that we are not at war and suggest that there is some type of 911 conspiracy going on …….and at the same time you say.
<
p>
“Let our reps know the time has come to take back America.!
<
p>
Please note that the bi-partisan 911 commission was formed by our reps , under a constitution you seem to know quite well. The commission came to certain conclusions about what happened that day.
<
p>
The commission was comprised of a bi-partisan group of democrats and republicans, who were highly respected loyal dedicated americans and dug deep into the all the elements of 911. Both administrations took a lot of heat . Remember the current administration was only in office a short time .But, in any event, most of the recommendations were enacted by your reps.
<
p>
I concluded, after watching the hearings on TV and reading the 911 report that……. WE ARE AT WAR..
<
p>
You , however, think there was a conspiracy? Where are your facts that lead you to this conclusion?
First, I did not vote Democrat in 2000 or 2004 elections.
<
p>
As far as ‘letting are reps know,’ certainly they are all we have to voice our concerns.
<
p>
Note that in recent months we had oft heard statements regarding intelligence issues, sometimes as excuses as to why someone did not know something crucial ‘until now.’
<
p>
So is it with the 9-11 Commission’s fact-finding mission. Any conclusion drawn in light of the many new findings, some most-likely still in the hands of Patrick Fitzgerald, or, still yet revealed, cannot be considered to be the definitive authority of events that would warrant anyone to continue believing that what the Commission reported was the closing of this 9-11 matter. I am sure our reps are well aware of this by now. Remember that Bush tried to block the forming of this commission. I have no problem with the “bi-partisan group of democrats and republicans, who were highly respected loyal dedicated americans and dug deep into the all the elements of 911” as you have aptly described them, I have a problem with the quality of the intelligence they were privy to.
<
p>
While I cannot explain how others came to believe in conspiracy theories, I can point to a series of events I witnessed that were totally ignored by the FBI in the hours following 9-11, while our President was insuring us that these evildoers would be found. Without detailing my communications with them, I will say that the flippancy they did allow me was the reason I continued to look for answer on my own.
<
p>
So, I will recount my meager tale, and you can place me on the list of crackpots if you are so inclined, but, the following is only the REASON still look for answers. During my quests for truth, I have continually been led to sites such as rense.com as I explore issues. It was in rense’s much fewer pages some years back that I first read concern about a helicopter photographed over the towers shortly before they came down. Again, some nights ago, a search on something else led me to their now vastly expanded site. I am, once again, coming out of any denial time has afforded me. I understand that nothing I say proves anything, yet, as I sit here coughing-like most of my friends and neighbors who are still with us-I all too clearly understand to what extent my world changed that day.
<
p>
On the morning of 9-11 I guess I was awaken by the sound of the first plane hitting the tower. As usual, I turned on the television, went to make coffee, saw the report of the burning tower on the screen and then, the second plane hit. The sound bounced off the walls of our house. We jumped up, put on clothes, and immediately traveled the few blocks to the Staten Island waterfront promenade to stare in disbelief. There were only a handful of people there so far.
<
p>
I saw a black helicopter in the narrow channel of the Kill Van Kull, hovering near some tanks at the Hess facility in Bayonne, all of this within mere blocks of where I was standing. Then, two foreign men in local store uniform-shirts quickly approached the railing next to me gleefully, one taking a picture of the other pointing to the burning towers. As they immediately walked away I heard them speaking an unknown language. As everyone else was looking towards the towers, no one else saw these men until they were walking away.
<
p>
Something unnerved me. I rushed home to call Hess, to inquire if they had any threats–their facility is situated at the end of my street, directing across that narrow waterway. They assured me they were okay, no threats, no contact from authorities.
<
p>
The four bridges to our Island were now closed. We were alerted to look for some van. The next morning my husband and I returned to the hilly area from which direction I had seen those two men advance, to find many vehicles with out-of-state licenses parked on the road up there. We tried to reason that they were part of some response effort, since this hill overlooks our small financial district, including the local police department, government offices, and, the now closed-to-the-public Staten Island Ferry. Yet, some of the licenses were from as far away as Louisiana and California. This did not seem right for the timeframe.
<
p>
Without getting into the history of this next one, I recalled a small fire some months before on an adjacent slag beach, where I had discovered many receipts from a local Army base, including others up and down the East coast, which I had attributed to sailors in for Fleet Week, although the Army base receipts seemed out of place for that line of thinking. At the time I had gather some of them, yet, there were thrown out as trash by my son before I scrutinized them. Now, I returned to that beach, gathering up the many that were still lying in the brush that had grown around them. To this day they lie separated between the pages of a book that will most likely never be thrown away.
<
p>
We were being told that the identity of the highjackers were Mid-Eastern, yet, the men I saw resembled the Pakistani President speaking on television. I had their faces burned freshly in my mind. We were being warned of terrorist ‘cells’ possibly in our midst. So, I again called and E-mailed the FBI, knowing I knew where to look and could finger them. No one cared. Why? Therefore, my drive.
<
p>
So, as I end, I will once again add that in light of research, my own futile experiences, and the experiences of others, no one will ever convince me that our Government was taken by surprise–to put it mildly.
<
p>
Have I spread my thoughts to others?…not really. Most people I know support Bush, while living in their individual bubbles–although, curiously, in recent months I have been asked my thoughts on some issues, most likely because they know I have a mind full of information that I try keep to myself. Still, I cannot utter a word regarding conspiracy to them. Like I said in my last posting, too many people are living in fear, real absolute fear. How do I add to this? I cannot. Yet, here on the Internet, I can feel freer to explore such ‘unspeakable’ things.
<
p>
Sorry for the drama I’ve aroused, if you were hoping that I might actually be able to finger someone, I further apologize.