Letters to the Editor
Jim White
Published Letters: 1089 Editor's Choice: 15
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rollotomasi
[Read the article: Still more White House secrecy -- this time in the Tillman investigation]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]You state that John Dean "is correct about impeachment being a political process, and one presumably can extend this political context to contempt of Congress proceedings."
I would disagree strongly with you and Dean. I would say that impeachment is a bedrock principle of our Constitution which provides for the removal of those who have broken the law and are no longer fit to serve in public office.
What is political is the calculus of whether a bill bringing articles can pass and then be followed by conviction. Just because very poor decisions were made on this point in the past should have no bearing on choosing to move forward when it is warranted. In fact, arguments have been presented that the Constitution actually requires Congress to move forward with impeachment at this point, given the level of lawlessness demonstrated by the Bush Administration.
I would agree that speculation on the advisability of bringing charges now compared to last December is intriguing. I would add that Bush's response to the new amendment proposed by Warner and Lugar may play a large role for those reading the Senate tea leaves on this issue. In fact, Shailagh Murray actually writes the f-word (fillibuster) today in discussing the amendment.
Stay tuned, things could get very interesting in the next sixty days. (Snark alert, that amounts to 0.33 Friedman Units)
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re Uniformitarian v catastrophist
[Read the article: Still more White House secrecy -- this time in the Tillman investigation]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Che Pasa wrote:
Uniformitarian plodding is periodically punctuated with sudden (and sometimes catastrophic) events from out of the blue. The trick is to be able to appreciate and make the most of all of these experiences, not to discount some of them out of an ideological or philosophical distaste.
In some biological systems, the "sudden events from out of the blue" are actually a result from the plodding and not from the blue at all. For example, the gerontologist was far from surprised as our family watched a member succumb very quickly to Alzheimer's. Although the damage from the disease is steady and progressive, the doctor explained that patients often develop tremendous coping mechanisms, but eventually a threshold of damage is achieved at which the ability to cope breaks down.
The outside appearance of this process is that of a catastrophic event (in our case only a couple of months between taking away the car keys and moving to a facility with the highest level of constant care) even though the damage in getting there was essentially constant.
I believe a similar process is at work here. The steady drumbeat of investigations, with constant stonewalling, is being heard at some level by the citizens. The "coping mechanism" of the press and the RWNM eventually will reach its threshold. Keith Olbermann suggested that the commutation of Libby's sentence may serve as the point at which the threshold is achieved. Several posters today have argued in a convincing manner that achieving contempt of Congress charges (by whatever route) may also be the threshold step.
Once the threshold is achieved, and all the elements for impeachment and conviction are in place, kovie has pointed out that those who understand the system very well will see that the appropriate next steps are taken in a timely fashion.
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The only intelligent thing the Bushies are doing
[Read the article: Fred Hiatt defends the administration's mild, restrained secrecy]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]It is very easy for those who pay little attention to political affairs to believe that both the Democrats and Republicans are not very smart and are engaged in battles worthy of fourth graders. The discussion thread on yesterday's story presented some very cogent arguments (that weren't accepted by everyone) that the Democrats are actually engaged in a calculated process that has as its goal the correction of the myriad faults the Bushies have brought on us. The strategy requires incremental progress for now and can be perceived from the outside as weak and unfocused. Several of us believe that this approach is working and will result in the return, eventually, of Constitutional government.
Similarly, it is very easy to look at the actions of the Bush Administration and simply regard them as idiots. I do this on a daily basis. However, the one point on which I see some intelligence at work is their devotion to secrecy. The actions of apologists like Hiatt and (best to keep it in the dark) Cohen help in this regard immensely.
The fact is, the bulk of the illegal activities of the Bush cabal collapse immediately when fully exposed. The essential steps in exposure begin with media exposure but must be followed by the courts or Congress taking action in response to these illegal actions.
This is where the Bushies have it right. By stonewalling at every juncture, they are taking the only course available to them to prevent collapse of the system. Remember that even when they are forced into open court, they simply dismiss the case and walk away. They know that what they are doing is wrong and any true exposure opens the door to collapse.
Given that, here's a new battle cry:
Turn on the lights, restore our rights.