Congress Shall Make No Law ...
Published July 12, 2008
This makes Bush an unindicted co-conspirator in a felony. His now-successful attempt to change FISA retroactively is what makes FISA ex post facto. Constitutional Law Professor Jonathan Turley (George Washington University School of Law) observed: "This is the type of thing the Bush administration is famous for and now the Democrats are doing. That is, to change the law to conform to past conduct. It's what any criminal would love to do."
Ex post facto laws are prohibited in federal law by Article I, section 9, clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution: "No bill of attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed." Despite the false claim that the telecom immunity provisions of the "New and improved" FISA bill do not constitute an ex post facto law, such advocates are wrong. Bush's promotion of a retroactive immunity is ex post facto when those harmed are taken into account.
Lets look at the three categories of ex post facto laws:
- those “which punish as a crime an act previously committed, which was innocent when done;
- which make more burdensome the punishment for a crime, after its commission;
- or which deprive one charged with crime of any defense available according to law at the time when the act was committed.
"I/we didn't know" might apply to an individual, but corporations pay big bucks for legal staffs to keep their activities away from criminal and civil liabilities. The fact that Qwest Communications refused to comply with a Bush administration request to provide surveillance of its customers indicates a belief that such a request might be illegal and subject Qwest to potential legal problems. Such a belief had to have been discussed by the legal staffs of the companies which cooperated in subverting our freedoms and liberties in the name of defending the global economic interests of the neoconfidence men. Thus, there was no innocence about the nature of the action. They knew they were on shaky legal ground.
Since to date there has been no penalty for complying with the illegal actions of the Bush administration, there is no increase in penalty for same.
The Bush administration has yet to be subjected to any charges, criminal or civil, in this matter. But there are affected parties.
Lawyers for Al-Haramain (a faith-based charity whose assets were seized by the Bush administration) assert that Bush's illegal spying activities included having the National Security Agency conduct warrantless electronic surveillance of their attorney-client communications during March and April of 2004 and turning over the gathered data to the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control. The FBI was sent to confiscate any evidence the defense had which would show that the Bush administration acted illegally.
- Congress Shall Make No Law ...
- Published: July 12, 2008
- Type: Opinion
- Section: Politics
- Filed Under: Politics: U.S., Politics: Law and Rights, Politics: Elections and Candidates, Politics: War and Terrorism
- Writer: Realist
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Comments
You've saved me the trouble. I can move on to better things now.
"I can move on to better things now."
Maybe we can write in Robert Mugabe. If enough of us do it...
Heh.
I lived through JFK and am sure he is overrated. I agree with you on Obama. He is proving to be just another political scoundrel. A young punk with a suit and a smile and the nerve to exploit the hopes of the masses.
"Senator, I remember John Kennedy, and - despite an impressive oratorical ability - you don't come close to matching him."
That says it all.
Not wanting either of these guys for president leaves some of us between a rock and a hard place.
Since the presidency may well be screwed up, maybe the best way we can regain some control over the politicians and our government is to vote for no congressional candidate who has already served at least 12 years in Congress.
Lee: Since the presidency may well be screwed up, maybe the best way we can regain some control over the politicians and our government is to vote for no congressional candidate who has already served at least 12 years in Congress.
We tried that sort of with the "Contract for America" under Gingrich. Didn't work. Face it it's busted but still better than anything else.
Realist: Would you rather a scoundrel that does what is expident or another neocon? True, it seems McCain was bludgeoned into it, but there it is...
#7:
You'll have to explain how something that's busted is "still better than anything else."
That's a value judgement, not a fact, and not convincing.
"Busted" means no good, useless, worthless. What we've got is at least potentially fixable, but not if we blithely accept it as "still better than anything else". That's giving up without a fight.
Seems like you have the ex post facto thing all backwards to the intent. The point of that prohibition as I would understand it is that it is a safeguard for criminal defendents, like search and seizure law. That is, it's supposed to prohibit prosecuting someone for violating laws retroactively. It's certainly not meant to keep Congress from changing laws to give the president authority like this, whether doing so is or isn't a good idea.
However, I'm glad to see some of you left wingers fleeing from Obama. Still, this guy is the most left wing guy ever nominated by a major party that I know of. If this pinko ain't commie enough for you, then you're never, ever going to be able to vote for a major party candidate.
Thinking Obama ain't far enough out to support does not strike me as being the mark of a real "realist." But perhaps I should stop before I talk back into supporting him.
Al, You've mixed me up now. Is he pink, black or Red?
Is McCain too greyo, or not rightie enough?
Your analysis is way over my head. ARGHHH!
Obama was never intended for the Presidency of the United States, but Clinton was. Unfortunately for both campaigns George Washington is the standard by which all other presidents have been judged; Washington was no 'fill-up'.









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When will we get to read your article on how you can't support Nader because he's an egomaniacal socialist loon?
Dave