Bush and Cheney and their ilk derive their power from us. At least they used to. But now they are declaring themselves independent of the people of the United States, and independent of even the legislative branch,which exists to oversee the executive precisely in order to prevent the power-grabbing Bush and Cheney desire.
A Bush administration leaker has said Bush’s claim of executive privilege in the U.S. Attorneys scandal means that he can instruct the Department of Justice not to act on the contempt charges he now will likely face in light of his disregarding of subpoenas. White House spokesman Tony Snow coyly hints that the Department of Justice has always seen contempt charge enforcement as optional. In other words, Bush is once again sneering his favorite tune: “Me king, you subject.” The only hope is a congressional power to bring a charge called “inherent contempt,” which allows for intervention and even imprisonment for contempt without court involvement, using the House or Senate Sergeant-at-Arms to retrieve the recalcitrant party.
Meanwhile, establishment Republican Paul Craig Roberts, assistant treasury secretary under Reagan, tells us we must impeach now, that he believes Bush and Cheney will employ “false flag” events—terrorism either allowed to take place or falsely attributed—to expand the powers of the executive into the realm of dictatorship and to expand their war eastward to Iran.
Now we see why all that “keeping the powder dry” stuff was so unfathomably stupid. Now the Supreme Court, chock full of Bush appointees, might well rule in Bush’s favor in this matter. We are that close to losing, really, truly, actually losing democracy. The crisis does not loom; this is the crisis. Either we impeach Bush and Cheney now, or we sit around on our hands and nervously hope Roberts’ prediction doesn’t come true.
