Finally someone is getting some cajones and standing up to the Bush administration: my congressman, Rahm Emanuel.
As Dr. Zaius, Tennessee Guerilla Women and others have reported, Vice-Chancellor, er, Vice-President Dick Cheney has essentially declared himself a fourth branch of the government. Zaius' friend Jess Wundrun is even running a contest to name that fourth branch. My suggestion was "The Fourth Reich."
Let me back up a bit. This all started when the National Archives' Information Security Oversight Office, which was created by an executive order (i.e. a presidential legal fiat) to insure that classified information and documents are properly handled by executive branch agencies.
CNN reported that according to William Leonard, director of the oversight office, Cheney informed them it did not meet the definition of an executive branch agency and therefore was exempt from oversight.
You think that is chutzpah? Try this one on for size: according to the CNN article, Cheney then tried to abolish the oversight committee.
I'm just curious on this one-- since he's not, according to himself, within the executive branch, then under whose authority did he plan on abolishing the agency?
Fortunately, a couple of Democrats have finally gotten bold. First, veteran California congressman Henry Waxman, who is chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, sent a letter to Cheney's office questioning both the "both the legality and wisdom of (Cheney's) actions."
What's better, my congressman, Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) has really called him on this. He's planning to to introduce an amendment to the the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill to cut funding for Cheney's office.
My hero.
Emanuel has suggested that since Cheney does not feel he is within the Executive branch of the government, he should not be recieving funding earmarked for the Executive branch.
I was just talking to my son Adam about this all and explaining it, and he asked the logical question-- what does Cheney have to hide? Why is he avoiding oversight?
Gee, I'm wondering, just who was it that gave the original order to "out" Valarie Plame as a CIA agent when her husband refused to provide false data to support an invasion of Iraq?
You may want to go to Mr. Emanuel's House website and email him a "thank you" for what he's done.
And if your congressperson hasn't done this, you may want to go to the House of Representatives website, find your representative (you can do that by zip code in the upper left corner) and let him or her know how you feel.
And in case other Democrats don't also grow cajones and call Cheney out on this, as a public service I'm forwarding a revised "Branches of Government" chart to reflect the new structure of the U.S. government:
8 comments:
I believe you're chart is incorrect. It should have Dick Cheney at the TOP of the chart, above the other branches, not co-equal to the rest of the branches which would be just absurd as we all know. WHAT exactly is impeachable conduct? I'm really wondering.
Cheney is at the top isn't he? The real leader - the one spreading VICE in this case - is the Number Two. I heard that this is not un-natural in these 'clandestine' groups, outside of the checks and balances of suppposed democracy.
The 'branches' of government are hiding the trunk - which consists of I don't know what. But surely, time has come to re-make re-model government. This present system is self-serving. What can replace it? It patently isn't working and the world waits to see if you can uprooot this present bunch.
Great positive post. I do hope more Americans will become politicized and break this father/son; husband/(wife) monarchy masquerading as democracy.
I think instead of globalisation and centralisation, the opposite should be occuring. Who wants to live in a mono-cultural world? Well, take a look round the world, signs of such a future are appearing...
I also think few of us really understand and reflect on how hoodwinked we are in accepting something freely called 'democracy'. Even if we don't have children, don't we owe it to the future of humanity to boot out the bastards who send 160,000 of your poorly educated to hostile lands.
For a democracy that serves a pathocracy at the top.
Isn't it time to look at them as psychopaths craving power and who will lie in order to sustain and build upon it?
But the problem is the monetary system - and individuals who control can be used against us. 'Born In A Prison' Yoko Ono sang - and though naive, in a sense we are born into a construct where money determines all. And is used as a bargaining chip in your life.
And children - are forced into the 8 to 4 system serving routine at an earlier and earlier age. Isn't that a prison construct in a sense? All due to the financial system...
P.S I love America - the living America, not the parasitic living corpse dripping with blood it's government too often resembles...
Gawd, he's an evil fuck, isn't he?
I have just learned that Cheney did not say that he was not a member of the Executive branch, but that, as a person who has both Executive and Legislative duties the law did not apply to him.
If he was so busy being a member of the Legislative Branch one would think he would have remembered John Edwards. We know he recalls Patrick Leahy.
Fourth Reich was an excellent suggestion for Dick's branch, I think we should take to using it for the entire administration as well as the brownshirted Talibaptists and christofascists.
Well, he's already made the unilateral decision to charge us more for a gallon of his gasoline than we'd pay for a night with a whore, so why not?
I send an email to my representative. It won't do any good, they guy is a tool. I did not vote for him. He's an ass kisser and unfortunately I am in the moniority where I live. Surround by conservative Republicans that believe what Georgie spews out of his lying evil mouth.
Macguffin-
Yeah, Dick is the big cheese in the administration.
What is impeachable conduct? Well, certainly not flagrantly disregarding the Constitution. Getting a consensual BJ is, though.
Danny-
It's painful-- you wonder just how bad does it have to get before the majority of people get outraged.
About a quarter of American voters still approve of this adminstration. What the hell is wrong with them?
Beth-
You said it!
Jess-
The fact that he is the tie-breaker in the Senate is a pretty specious way to make that claim, isn't it?
Yeah, Leahy found Dick charming. I hope that he heads the committee that investigates this all when this is all over. Then he can say "No, f*ck you, Cheney!"
I'm not familar with the Edwards story. What happened?
CP-
It certainly takes talent, doesn't it, to invade and occupy the country with a quarter of the world's oil reserves, and yet end up with less oil and with higher prices in the end. I guess it didn't occur to the geniuses that the oil is only useful if there's a stable government on the land above it and you can extract it.
Cheer34-
They actually do listen. And the Republicans in the House and Senate are listening-- they're in a scramble to distance themselves from this administration.
Thanks, JY. I'm there. I'll communicate. Thanks for the info!!
Post a Comment