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Oppose Bush's Power Grab
King Features Syndicate ^ | 09/09/02 | Charley Reese

Posted on 09/08/2002 11:26:24 PM PDT by GalvestonBeachcomber

Americans who value the Constitution should stand with Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., and oppose George Bush's attempted power grab in conjunction with establishing a Department of Homeland Security.

The Bushies are trying to frame the debate as either protecting bureaucracy or providing security for Americans. In fact, the debate is about preventing an authoritarian president from sacrificing the Constitution in the name of providing security.

Let me remind you that those who prefer security to freedom will lose both.

Bush wants to be able to disregard labor contracts and civil-service rules, as well as move money within the department as he pleases. He claims that this is necessary for national security or, to use his current Orwellian phrase, homeland security.

Bull.

The Constitution is quite clear. Congress has sole authority to write the laws, including the civil-service laws and those involving labor contracts. Congress has the sole authority to authorize and appropriate money. So what Mr. Bush wants is to disregard the Constitution and bully Congress into ceding its constitutional authority to the executive branch. The mopes in the House have already done that, but a few of the Democrats in the Senate are resisting it.

We have had ignorant men occupy the presidency several times, but none, I think, as ignorant of the Constitution and as disinclined toward freedom as George Bush.

He made a Freudian slip one day in an offhand remark to the press. He said, "I think Americans ought to be allowed to express their opinions." Ought to be allowed? Ought to be allowed? Hey, Mr. President, read the First Amendment. We have the God-given right to express our opinions, whether you and your government think we should be "allowed" to do so or not. Allowed my foot.

The whole idea of this Department of Homeland Security is silly anyway. Anyone who thinks that sweeping thousands of employees from where they are now into one department is going to improve anything doesn't know much about government. I've lived through a government reorganization, and it results in more employees and less efficiency.

Besides, the two key organizations necessary for homeland security — the FBI and the CIA — are excluded and will remain where they are. That doesn't make sense, frankly, though consolidating the Border Patrol and Customs certainly does. Just don't expect it to be a panacea. It will take months and months to sort it all out after the legislation creates it.

But don't buy this hokum that unless Bush can ride roughshod over the rights of federal employees and ignore the separation of powers, he can't protect the American people. He can't anyway, and this is just another example of his imperial mind-set.

Civil-service laws were enacted to protect federal employees from being abused by politicians who would fire and transfer them to make room for patronage jobs or extort campaign contributions from them. Nothing that involves national security necessitates those protections being removed.

It's odd that Mr. Bush, unable to face the truth that our own Middle East policy is responsible for Sept. 11, would claim that terrorists hate us because we are free. The greatest threat to American freedom today is not Osama bin Laden but George W. Bush, who, if he is even aware of its existence, seems to think the Constitution is just an antiquated piece of parchment that belongs in a museum.

Every abuse of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights in this and the previous century has been done in the name of security. It is the common excuse of those who prefer power to freedom.


TOPICS: Government; Your Opinion/Questions
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
Pat ? Now really, dear, you are attempting to be funny ; aren't you ? Pat, Pat Buchannan, the man, who said on T.V. that he REALLY didn't ever mean everything he said to his followers, but he said it anyeay ... that Pat ?

I, unlike you, are on the right web site. I, unlike you, have spent my time here learning as much as I possibly could, about everything and everyone and THEN made up my mind. I, unlike you, understand what political reality is , can spot a charlatan ( Liberal AND supposed Conservatative ) almost instantly, and don't cotton to demagouges of any stripe. I, unlike you, know the difference between a glib, bloviating populist, and a Conservative.

Pat and Ross and everyother fringer, whom you can come up with, all together, couldn't do as well a job, as President Bush has done thus far. I am far from agreeing with everything that he has said and done; however, give the man his due ... he's a better president than his father was and a far better president than you give him credit for being.

21 posted on 09/09/2002 1:02:07 AM PDT by nopardons
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To: Timesink
You made it that far? The first line about made me retch (but I'm from West Virginia so...).

The day I stand with Byrd, I'll know I'm in hell.

22 posted on 09/09/2002 1:38:47 AM PDT by itzmygun
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
Americans who value the Constitution should stand with Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va... Do we bring our own white sheets, crosses, and gasoline, or does Kluxer Byrd provide them? Byrd has less legitimacy on any issue than Teddy "I killed my pregnant girlfriend" Kennedy...and that is not saying much.
23 posted on 09/09/2002 2:29:49 AM PDT by Young Rhino
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
Bush's grab for power is equivalent to Hillary's grab at the health care system.

So, a blatant socialist attempt to nationalize 1/7 of the US economy is "equivalent" to someone attempting to defend America from both external enemies and incompetent union goons, huh?

Charley and the other Paleo-kooks have finally gone off the deep end. Hope you enjoy it out there with him.

24 posted on 09/09/2002 2:35:37 AM PDT by Cincinatus
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To: wirestripper
The INS is a mess and they have to rely on unions to decide what to do --yet the president and his administration take the flak for its failures. It is unbelievable that unions run this government and that inept people can stay on the dole for life. The democrats certainly should know this--yet they fail to fix it. Imagine combining all the departments and the union decides who can be fired or who can be moved around and the president needs to wait for their decision. Perhaps one needs to look at how these unions have contributed to the incompetence of the INS.
25 posted on 09/09/2002 4:10:58 AM PDT by olliemb
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To: nopardons
Ditto and a far better president than Clinton. Big Time!
26 posted on 09/09/2002 4:15:38 AM PDT by olliemb
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To: Pontiac
Sure and you would like for the Clintons to be in charge again, right?
27 posted on 09/09/2002 4:20:41 AM PDT by gulfcoast6
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
Ridiculous. Bush cannot order us into anything. To win this war he needs volunteers. End of story.
28 posted on 09/09/2002 4:21:52 AM PDT by lavaroise
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To: Friedrich Hayek
It's odd that Mr. Bush, unable to face the truth that our own Middle East policy is responsible for Sept. 11....

Charlie agrees with the far right AND the far left. Yup, it's "blame the victim" time, a page stolen from those professional victims, the Palestinians, that Saudi prince that was going to donate $10 million to NYC until he blamed us & Rudy refused the money, the French (of course), and the rest of the "We Hate America" folks.

29 posted on 09/09/2002 4:23:17 AM PDT by Catspaw
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To: olliemb
Perhaps one needs to look at how these unions have contributed to the incompetence of the INS.

Oh, they have! But the unionized newspapers won't print it! The unionized networks won't air it! The unionized publishers won't buy it!

30 posted on 09/09/2002 4:30:21 AM PDT by Cold Heat
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To: nopardons; GalvestonBeachcomber
Boy oh boy, are YOU ever on the WRONG web site

---------------------------------------------------------

About Free Republic

Who are we? Free Republic is a loosely organized group of grassroots Americans who support our Constitution and look for honesty, integrity and honor from those in government. Like millions of Americans, we are fed up with our out of control federal government. Therefore, we are working together to roll back decades of liberal/socialist public policy and eliminate the waste, fraud, abuse and corruption pervasive in Washington today.

Most of the visitors to the Free Republic website are attracted to our very popular (and addictive) conservative forum for two basic reasons: First, this is a fast moving forum where you can often find breaking news and up to the minute updates. But, most importantly, visitors are encouraged to comment on the news of the day here, and especially to contribute whatever information they may have to help others better understand a particular story.

----------------------------------------------------------- Nopardons, you really should remove your blinders ask yourself who is on the wrong web site.

Regards

J.R.

31 posted on 09/09/2002 4:45:28 AM PDT by NMC EXP
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To: NMC EXP
You aren't Jim Robinson, you are cherrypicking and then MISUSING Jim's words, and need help in simple reading comprehension, dear. In case you haven't noticed it, words have set meanings, those meanings are NOT open to interpration, and I suggest ( highly ) , that you ask Jim Rob just what exactly he means by that statement. It's more than obvious, that you don't unbderstand it. :-)
32 posted on 09/10/2002 12:49:45 AM PDT by nopardons
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To: nopardons
You aren't Jim Robinson

True.

you are cherrypicking and then MISUSING Jim's words, and need help in simple reading comprehension, dear.

False.

In case you haven't noticed it, words have set meanings, those meanings are NOT open to interpration

In this case you should substitute "phrases" for "words".

and I suggest ( highly ) , that you ask Jim Rob just what exactly he means by that statement. It's more than obvious, that you don't unbderstand [sic] it. :-)

My reading comprehension is just fine. I scored in the 95+ percentile in both the SAT and ACT back in 1969 before the tests were dumbed down.

The FreeRepublic mission statement I cited may no longer be operative. That is Jim Robinson's decision. The decision to ban posters because of philosophical differences is his as well, not yours.

Why are you intimidated by ideas and opinions different than your own?

Regards

J.R.

33 posted on 09/10/2002 4:09:18 AM PDT by NMC EXP
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To: NMC EXP
Did you even read this sophomoric nonsense?

He said, "I think Americans ought to be allowed to express their opinions." Ought to be allowed? Ought to be allowed? Hey, Mr. President, read the First Amendment. We have the God-given right to express our opinions, whether you and your government think we should be "allowed" to do so or not. Allowed my foot.

This moron doesn't even realize that Bush is commenting on Congress' running roughshod over the desires of the electorate. From that moronic misunderstanding he goes on the most juvenile of rants that is below even the standards of a rant on DU, let alone FR.

My reading comprehension is just fine. I scored in the 95+ percentile in both the SAT and ACT back in 1969 before the tests were dumbed down.

I don't want to take you away from any more of your very difficult work in aerospace engineering, but let me just point out to your powerful brain that percentile rankings are independent of the difficulty of the test. If you need a further explanation to avoid interrupting your quantum physics calculations, feel free to ask.

34 posted on 09/10/2002 4:24:39 AM PDT by AmishDude
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To: AmishDude
This moron doesn't even realize that Bush is commenting on Congress' running roughshod over the desires of the electorate

You and George the 2nd -- govern by the polls, not the Constitution.

Regards

J.R.

35 posted on 09/10/2002 4:56:13 AM PDT by NMC EXP
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To: NMC EXP
And unions are in the Constitution . . . where? And where does it forbid fedgov employees from getting fired?

Tell me, oh wise and knowledgable one.

36 posted on 09/10/2002 6:03:02 AM PDT by AmishDude
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
Bush's "grab for power" is no different than powers given to Presidents all along. It's just that the Dems and other nut heads want to change it. The Dept. of Homeland Security is NOT the place to do that kind of thing. Try another, less critical, dept. to elevate the labor unions and so forth.
37 posted on 09/10/2002 6:11:38 AM PDT by MEGoody
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
"It's odd that Mr. Bush, unable to face the truth that our own Middle East policy is responsible for Sept. 11."

Well, let's see. 09/11/01 took place about 9 months after Bush took office. It is said the event took a couple of years to plan. Who was President when the terrorists decided to move forward with this? Oh, yeah, Clinton. So if 'our' policy was responsible for this, blame Clinton, not Bush.

38 posted on 09/10/2002 6:14:01 AM PDT by MEGoody
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
"Americans who value the Constitution should stand with Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., and oppose George Bush's attempted power grab in conjunction with establishing a Department of Homeland Security."

That'll be the day! I don't envision standing with the Democraps on anything!

39 posted on 09/10/2002 6:14:15 AM PDT by The Scorpion King
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To: GalvestonBeachcomber
"Even Ross Perot would be better than what we have."

LOL!

Oh, you're serious?

Seek professional help, my friend.

40 posted on 09/10/2002 6:16:06 AM PDT by MEGoody
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