Reply #48: DUTY DONE. Just hit up both Bob Graham and Bill Nelson (Florida)

[playahata1]

My e-mail to my Senators:

Dear Mr. Graham (and Mr. Nelson)

If you TRULY believe in the Constitution that you and your fellow Members of Congress have sworn to affirm and uphold and defend, you MUST move forward with Contempt of Congress proceedings against Attorney General John Ashcroft for his refusal to turn over Justice Department memos regarding the torture of prisoners in Iraq.

Mr. Ashcroft is a danger to the Republic because of his contempt for not only Congress, but also the Constitution he, too, has sworn to affirm and uphold and defend. He has routinely disregarded not only the respective functions of the three branches of government with regards to the prosecution of the military action in Iraq -- and please be reminded that there has been NO formal declaration of WAR in this instance -- but also the Bill of Rights and other Constitutional protections domestically. He is a more-than-willing participant/enabler in the erosion of the First Amendment -- from the Religious Right's trying to impose its particular brand of Christianity (his own Assemblies of God doctrine and dogma, for example) on everyone, to the regulation/restriction of what Americans can read in school and at the library and at home, watch on television and at the movies, and view at the nation's museums.

Mr. Ashcroft has nothing but contempt and disresepct for anyone -- from Senators to Congresspersons to ordinary citizens -- who objects to what he says and does within the scope of his duties as Attorney General, not to mention anyone who does not subscribe to his particular religious beliefs. In fact, he regards such people as "traitors," "Godless," and "un-American." Mr. Ashcroft may honestly believe that he is doing his duty in the name of protecting the American people. On the contrary, through his words and his actions, he has helped put this nation in danger on a scale unprecedented in its history.

It is up to you and your fellow Members of Congress to remind Mr. Ashcroft that he has a responsbility to the people he has sworn to serve and protect -- and that does not mean ONLY those who stand to profit financially from the blood and sacrifice of those men and women who have put their lives at risk in Iraq. He also has a responsibility to those who do not share his particular brand of politics, his particular concept of a Supreme Being, or his particular vision of what being an American is all about.

If you and your fellow Members of Congress have any principles and courage and compassion left in you, THAT is what you must do, for the sake of this nation. Peace and blessings.