Executive Branch Has Taken Over the Other Three Branches
Frank A. Jones

The Bush administration has used 9-11 as the basis for everything it  wants to do, even taking over and just about merging the three branches of government into one, the Executive branch.  Resultantly, this administration has tortured detainees—some having no offense against this government at all; invaded countries that pose no threat to us and having done nothing to us; spied on American citizens without lawful warrants; given vast sums of the tax-payers’ money to its friends in business—with a clear but ignored conflict of interest of  Vice President Cheney and Halliburton, etc. And since he virtually controls all branches of government there is no opposition.

Even now, the administration is trying to quash lawsuits against businesses that have helped them violate the laws of this nation and international laws. In January a San Francisco Bay Area group, Electronic Frontier Foundation, filed a suit against AT&T for having handed over to the government the private phone records of citizens.  Now the Bush administration is filing a brief asking the court to dismiss the suit. And, of course, the government is invoking its often used claim of national security—they actually said that their claim is “Military and state secrets privilege.” So they are filing their brief under seal.  

In another lawsuit against the misbehavior of this Bush administration, a German citizen, Khaled Al-Masri, alleges he was arrested, tortured, and detained illegally for four months; he filed suit against the US government for unlawful arrest and violation of international laws.  Instead of having his day in court, the Bush administration has asked a federal court to block his lawsuit. The administration is claiming irreparable harm this case would cause to the US and other world governments the US deals with if the case were to proceed.  Since the case has already come to light, as most wrongful secrets do, the US government is not denying or acknowledging they know anything about this man. However, these matters show an American public that does not want to see our foibles the horrible things their government is doing and has done around the world in its name. 

And George Bush says with a straight face, “They [9-11 attackers] attack us because they hate our freedoms [to do many horrible things around the world and the US public not know about it].” 

Under 9-11 and the claim of national security, this administration has almost taken over the entire government and consolidated it in the Executive branch. But the claim of national security can go just so far, and in these two and other lawsuits that will follow, it will be interesting to see if the Judicial branch will surrender wholly its powers to the Executive  branch, as the Congressional branch has almost done, especially since the Congressional branch is dominated by Republicans. 

The last six years of George Bush have been an exercise in discovery and madness as we have seen exactly what Republicans will do when they control the government totally—that is our discovery. The conclusion of many is that they will lie, cheat, snoop and spy on its citizens, cause war on anyone they want to, torture prisoners and deny the International Red Cross access to prisoners held secretly contrary to the Geneva Convention,  have young American  men killed in foreign lands for no good reason, have this nation become a world bully and pariah, claim national security for all sorts of untoward actions, pilfer the public’s treasury, violate international war, etc. That is the madness.

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger cannot go abroad without facing the threat and possibility of arrest and detainment as a war criminal. This same shadow hangs over the Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, and George W. Bush once they leave office and are private citizens [assuming they will honor the constitution enough to become private citizens.]  

Just last week, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic minority leader, announced that were the Democrats to win the House of Representatives in November, they would not impeach the president. That decision may be based on the fact that Dick Cheney would then become the president were a bill of impeachment sustained by the Senate. Yet, if there has been a president that needs impeachment, it is this current president for all the misdeeds and almost criminal actions that his administration has engaged in, in spite of Dick Cheney becoming president in his stead!

The present administration may be getting away with crimes against humanity and against this government while in office, but it may be that Rumsfeld, Cheney, and Bush will be tied up in litigation after they are citizens for many years to come. They may claim exemption from litigation while in office, but the law has a strange way of getting to a person through various forms of reasoning, national and international laws. And even though the US has not signed on to the International Law Court, as all other industrial powers have, civil and criminal suits will undoubtedly be raised against them.

Americans are left only with the hope that the other two branches of the government will assert their constitutional rights and stand up to the Executive branch. The Judicial branch has an opportunity to do so in its denial of the Bush administration’s request to quash the various suits against it. The Judicial branch's actions are anybody’s guess.[]

Frank A. Jones
5/15/06

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