Posted on 12/20/2005 7:29:54 AM PST by kellynla
Because he did not need to. He had the power without Congressional authorization.
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This crap is just the whining, backsliding LOSERS of the MSM crying like little babies because we have a functional President that cares about protecting this country from its enemies -- something they COULD NEVER PROVIDE. Such childish socialists that want to do everything they can to pull down a defense-strong White House.
Amen! G. Will neglects to take into consideration the fact that the US Constitution grants the Commander In Chief broad powers in carrying out his war time duties. Last time I checked, the US Constitution trumps federal statutes.
I agree. However, all this gets back to the fact that we should have had a declaration of war on Iraq and Afghanistan. The fact is that we went to war with them. For some reason, however, it has been decided that we don't declare war anymore.
Had we done a DOW, my guess would be that Bush would have firmer ground to stand on here, and it would be harder for the democraps to complain about the wars, given that they would have voted to declare war.
If there really was latitude for the dems (or anyone else) to bring charges for these actions taken by W, they would have already done so. This is all just meaningless bluster in attempt to score political points ahead of the 06 elections.
It is my position that the American people see this tactic and have grown weary of it. The left tried this last election cycle and they lost then and they will lose over it this time also.
Nice post.
If the Dems and other lefties can produce one citizen not involved with terrorism or other crimes whose rights were violated, then I will support their argument. We are placing a lot of trust in the president to do the right thing. I firmly believe that the president has not betrayed that trust. I believe the onus is on the lefties to prove that Bush has abrogated that trust by spying on an innocent citizen. Lacking that proof, they should quit stabbing the country in the back.
That is an interesting point about not declaring war. Probably, the "powers that be" believe that a declaration of war is only fitting when there is a all out, unreserved and unapologetic war against a nation, not when we are simply "rooting out terrorists" or "liberating" a nation from a tyrant. When we declared war on Japan and Germany, there was not talk of "liberating" the people of Japan and Germany, as far as I know.
C'mon George. The Prez told us why he had to make some of the decisions. He said that a public debate over the laws and what could or could not be done, would allow the enemy to know exactly how to adjust in order to avoid detection. I will grant that I'm no Hawking genius, but it made sense.
After all, on Sept. 14, 2001, Congress had unanimously declared that ``the president has authority under the Constitution to take action to deter and prevent acts of international terrorism,'' and had authorized ``all necessary and appropriate force'' against those involved in 9/11 or threatening future attacks.
But then he contradicts himself:
...the president's decision to authorize NSA's surveillance without the complicity of a court or Congress was a mistake.
Why does it sound like he wants it both ways? How can you fight a war with "all necessary and appropriate force" if you have to keep checking in with congress?
Furthermore, Mr. Will sounds like he's accusing President Bush of keeping congress in the dark. President Bush simply did not do that. President Bush sought and obtained authorization. He was given authorization implicitly under his war powers and explicitly when he briefed congress of his intent shortly after 9/11.
From over here, Mr. Will there was simply NO MISTAKE.
No it should not. Deep into the middle of the battle is not the time to suddenly stop a very effective defensive (really probably more of an offensive) effort against the enemy to have a debate over the legalities of the President's actions taken to safeguard the nation.
The time to have this debate has come and gone. If the national press is so concerned about the unwarranted use of unchecked power by the executive then they should have piped up and thrown it out there during the Klintoon years when the existence of Echelon and Carnivore was revealed. The fact they did not means only one thing; their current motivation is only to damage this president during wartime. And that's treason.
nooooooo and if it was on This Week; I don't waste my time watching and haven't since Brinkley left.
The fact is that the President did inform Congress and Tom Daschle admits this and claims that he voiced objections at the time. So, the Democrats and the media are lying again.
Wrong.
The People of the United States have powers, some of which are delegated to Congress and some to the President.
In 1941, Congress used its power as follows: " the President is hereby authorized and directed to employ the entire naval and military forces of the United States and the resources of the Government to carry on war against the Imperial Government of Japan; and, to bring the conflict to a successful termination, all of the resources of the country are hereby pledged by the Congress of the United States."
Using those resources of the Government as directed by Congress, President Roosevelt censored the press, opened the mail, detained American citizens indefinitely without trial and confiscated their property, revoked naturalizations and deported enemy aliens, shot enemy agents without trial, carried on a continuous propaganda campaign with federal funds, seized entire industries for war production, voided contracts, rationed private property, and in general kicked ass.
Do you and other FReepers contend that the exercise of those powers, "authorized and directed" by Congress, is intrinsic to the Office of the President?
If so, why do you think that?
If not, whence does Congress derive the power to authorize and direct such things?
And if you believe Congress has such power, do you believe they have exercised it post 9/11?
They don't have the House, so, correct it's political bluster. Fatal mistake on their part since it continues to weaken them on the national security front. The issue to be more concerned with is McCain/RINO's trying to restrict yet another means of winning the WOT. They need to be watched and beaten down. I suspect in part this is why the W.H. has come out strong it will not relinquish it's constitutional power, to pre-empt them.
"The key point all these reports neglect is that these taps were on calls and e-mails either originating or terminating internationally. This is not domestic spying."
EXACTLY!
and I guess the clowns in the media either went to public schools or the forgot the Codebreakers of WWII.
sooner or later folks are going to have to realize that we are at war and there are butchers out there who want us all DEAD!
I would be outraged if we WEREN'T tapping the phones of these animals!
But what powers specifically. I do realize the Republican faithful would trash any document and ignore any law as they fawn over actions by Bush but we conservatives still have a concern. The Executive Branch's powers are not all inclusive in time of war. For example, does the President have the power to suspend habeas corpus? Does any law?
"Presumably the argument is that the president's implied powers as commander in chief, particularly with the nation under attack and some of the enemy within the gates, are not limited by statutes."
All of this makes sense to me. The entire Democrat Party, with a few notablee exceptions, e.g. Lieberman, is populated by traitors who would rather see another American city blown sky-high, or American fighting troops on the ground massacred, than deal with a victorious Republican Administration in 2006 and later in 2008.
Bush had good sound reasons for not letting the Democrat and RINO snakes in Congress know what he was doing, in exercising his legitmate war powers against terrorists and traitors in our midst.
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