Glen Greenwald over at
Unclaimed Territory linked yesterday to the
new Cato Institute report on Bush's terrifying power grab. The report is scathing, detailed, and well-done. Plus, it comes from an honest-to-goodness right-wing think tank, albeit one in the libertarian rather than theocratic mold. You have to be a serious kool-aid drinker to dismiss this one.
Anyone who remotely cares about the constitution should read this report. Although I often find stuff produced by the Cato Institute somewhat repulsive, this one deserves to be circulated as widely as possible.
Update: There have been two excellent diaries on this already; see here and here. Given that the diaries recieved only a handful of comments, I'll follow bustacap's suggestion and leave this up.
Here's an overview of the report from the executive summary:
Unfortunately, far from defending the Constitution, Pesident Bush has repeatedly sought to strip out the limits the document places on federal power. In its official legal briefs and public actions, the Bush administration has advanced a view of federal power that is astonishingly broad, a view that includes
* a federal government empowered to regulate core political speech--and restrict it greatly when it counts the most: in the days before a federal election;
* a president who cannot be restrained, through validly enacted statutes, from pursuing any tactic he believes to be effective in the war on terror;
* a president who has the inherent constitutional authority to designate American citizens suspected of terrorist activity as "enemy combatants," strip them of any constitutional protection, and lock them up without
charges for the duration of the war on terror--in other words, perhaps forever; and
* a federal government with the power to supervise virtually every aspect of American life, from kindergarten, to marriage, to the grave.
President Bush's constitutional vision is, in short, sharply at odds with the text, history, and structure of our Constitution, which authorizes a government of limited powers.
Its not like we kossacks didn't know this already, but this report provides a thorough, pointed, and devastating overview that is easily accessible. Plus its free, and in pdf format. Send it to everybody you know who claims to love the constitution. Heck, perhaps we should print it out and mail it to Specter's office.
I know things are getting scary when I find myself cheering the Cato Institute on.
Update II:
Given that this just hit the recommended list, and that it is my first diary to do so, I thought I'd celebrate by printing out the Cato report and sending it to Arlen Specter, along with a short (and polite) note asking him to read it. I'm printing it out as I type, and will put it in the mail first thing tomorrow. In case you want to do the same, his address is:
The Honorable Arlen Specter
Main Office:
711 Hart Building
Washington, DC 20510
Cheers.