As regular readers of this blog know, Alberto Gonzalez is a Rice graduate. Class of ’79. He was a member of Lovett College which (believe it or not) calls its student government the Central Committee.
I’m a Rice grad too. Class of ’77. So it pains me to say this. Gonzalez must be impeached.
Regardless of the merits of the case, it’s pretty clear that Congress has completely lost confidence in Gonzalez and the President likes him.
Here’s why.
This is about power,
about whether the Congress has any. The President chooses to ignore the law with
signing statements, and by stacking the Justice Department with people
who will go after political enemies while ignoring the crimes of
friends. But Congress still holds the ultimate power, which is to
fire people through the mechanism of impeachment. (To the left, W.W. Belknap, former cabinet member, impeached in 1876.)
Were this political nuke not in the Congress’ hands, a President
really could rule with absolute impunity. He would be a dictator, no
different from Putin or Chavez or Mugabe, especially since his absolute
power would also give him the power to manipulate elections — which
seems to have been the aim of the government’s "voting fraud" fixation.
Imagine if the roles were reversed. Imagine if Bill Clinton were
President, and the Congress in the hands of Republicans. Based on this
political calculus, would the Congress fail to act? Of course not. (And if you deny it, you’re a liar and know it, so don’t post the lie unless you want to be laughed at.) In
fact, Congress has acted against Presidential perversions of justice
even when both were of the same party, as in Roosevelt’s attempt at "court-packing" in the 1930s.
What is going on now is, if nothing else, equivalent to what Roosevelt attempted to do then.
This is not about partisanship. It’s about the Congress’ power,
which the President is ignoring. Yes, it’s political. God Bless America, it’s
political.
But if Congress fails to act, then the precedent is set. Justice is
perverted. All power is in the next President’s hand — he (or she) can ignore the
Congress as well as the courts.
Do you really want that power in the hands of a Hillary Clinton? No?
Well if you do nothing now, and she’s elected, all that power will be in Hillary Clinton’s hands.
Think she won’t use it as aggressively as Bush has, and reverse
everything this Republican Admnistration has done? Think her Justice
Department won’t go whole hog after the crimes of this era, aiming to
put Bush, Cheney, Rove, Gonzalez — all of ’em — behind bars?
Wanna bet? Wanna bet with your freedom? Wanna bet with the Constitution?
So put your votes where your words are.
Impeach.
Because if you don’t stand up for the rights of the political minority now, the new majority won’t stand up for your rights as a minority later.
At some point, your talk of "principle" which calls for Democrats to be
banished for blow jobs while Republicans are protected on everything else becomes too much to bear.
This has been a politically abusive marriage for over a decade, between Democrats and Republicans. Barring a coup, power is going to shift. Failing action on behalf of the Constitution now, Republicans who try to prop up Gonzalez — whether in or out of Washington — will find no mercy after 2008.
Nor will they deserve any.
