Contempt of Congress

        It is early Sunday morning and I hope that you moved your clocks up one hour, for those who do so. My coffee hasn't kicked in yet and I've not had much sleep so if the story following this doesn't make any sense to you, do not worry because it probably didn't to me either!

    When I come online in the morning the first thing that I usually do is scan the NYT, WaPo and many other online papers from all over the world. If it wasn't for the Internet, I would be screwed!

   I also browse around on the liberal, conservative, and anything in between political website to see what is being said.

   This morning my first trip was over to the DailyKos site as it is one of my favorites.  This morning, one of their diarist, 8ackgr0und N015e, has a look at what used to be called contempt of congress. It is still called that but it has seldom been used the last time being against James Watt in 1982 for not turning over subpoenaed documents.

  So what exactly is contempt of congress? It is obstructing the work of the congress and the action is generally used when people refuse to testify before Congressional committee or do not provide documents which the committee has asked for.  HERE for more info

DailyKos    by 8ackgr0und N015e

Given the criminal behavior going on today, that is quaint. What an idea! Who knew you can get hit with contempt of congress charges for refusing to turn over subpoenaed documents?  Now I realize that if we set the bar that low, DC would have to put a lot of crack dealers and gang bangers back on the streets to accomodate the influx of privileged administration cronies.  But that ironic fact by itself should be a major clue to you of just how far out of control things have gotten.

This administration has no problem telling senators to "go fuck yourself"... to their face .... with no consequences.  And you wonder why their proxies feel safe calling you faggots?  It's because they think congress is a joke.  This is what happens when you let delinquents punk you without consequences.  The previous crew didn't do their job so now it's going to be tougher for the new leadership.  That's just the way it is.  Suck it up.  After yesterday's revelations I think congress has two options:  

1. It can reprimand, it can call for reform, it can empanel commissions to study, or

1. It can take the gloves off and defend the Union.  
2. If they go with option #1, I think history will have as much contempt for congress as we have for this administration.  

        As much as I would like for this little action to be used against most of the Bush administration, this would eat-up to much of the taxpayers resources. I'm kidding but can you imagine how long something like this would take to accomplish just beginning with Bush and Cheney.

   However, the threat of being issued a contempt of congress citation should do something to get the members of this clan to be more forthcoming with records request and other documents when they are asked for. So, maybe it's time that this little tool was put into use once again

 

IceRocket tags: congress, Alberto Gonzales, Robert Mueller, General Hayden, Robert Gates, Condolezza Rice

NYT Says Bush Should Replace Alberto Gonzales

    An editorial from Sunday's New York Times

During the hearing on his nomination as attorney general, Alberto Gonzales said he understood the difference between the job he held — President Bush’s in-house lawyer — and the job he wanted, which was to represent all Americans as their chief law enforcement officer and a key defender of the Constitution. Two years later, it is obvious Mr. Gonzales does not have a clue about the difference.

He has never stopped being consigliere to Mr. Bush’s imperial presidency. If anyone, outside Mr. Bush’s rapidly shrinking circle of enablers, still had doubts about that, the events of last week should have erased them.

It was Mr. Gonzales, after all, who repeatedly defended Mr. Bush’s decision to authorize warrantless eavesdropping on Americans’ international calls and e-mail. He was an eager public champion of the absurd notion that as commander in chief during a time of war, Mr. Bush can ignore laws that he thinks get in his way. Mr. Gonzales was disdainful of any attempt by Congress to examine the spying program, let alone control it.

On Thursday, Senator Arlen Specter, the senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, hinted very obliquely that perhaps Mr. Gonzales’s time was up. We’re not going to be oblique. Mr. Bush should dismiss Mr. Gonzales and finally appoint an attorney general who will use the job to enforce the law and defend the Constitution.

    Not only should Bush fire this dirtbag, but the House and Senate should investigate this bum for more criminal activity. In most cases I would believe in innocent until proven guilty, but in the case of any of the Bush Crime Family, they are guilty until proven innocent. Not much chance of that happening in this lifetime!

   The times editorial does miss one item of importance and that is that Bush doesn't follow nor defend the Constitution, so how would he know about hiring someone who would defend it? Another Attorney General would just be another Bush stooge.

 

IceRocket tags: Bush Crime family, Bush, Alberto Gonzales, Constitution, Arlene Spector