David Swanson: Help Stop Bush Pardons

[Hissyspit]

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/38428

Help Stop Bush Pardons
Submitted by davidswanson on Tue, 2008-12-23 00:43. Activism Criminal Prosecution
By David Swanson, UFPJ Acountability and Prosecution Working Group Convener, AfterDowningStreet

To UFPJ Member Groups (and others)

There is a danger that George W. Bush will do something no previous president has done and pardon crimes that he himself authorized. There is an even greater danger that the other branches of our government and our society as a whole will accept such pardons as legitimate. Here are five things you can do:

1. Rep. Jerrold Nadler has introduced a resolution opposing Bush’s possible pardons and calling on the Justice Department to create a special prosecutor. Please phone your Congress member’s district office or their DC office at 202-224-3121 and ask them to cosponsor H. Res. 1531; and please sign this petition, which will send an Email to your representative and your two senators: http://democrats.com/nadler-pardons

2. Plan local actions. We want the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan ended, Guantanamo closed, illegal detentions and torture ceased, and those responsible for these crimes prosecuted, not pardoned. Please plan a rally, vigil, or forum locally to advance this agenda. Please hold your event between January 11th and 20th — ideally, on the 15th. Be sure to add any events you plan to the UFPJ calendar.

3. Plan now to join us in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, January 6th, to be part of a March of the Dead that will greet the 111th Congress on its first day, demanding an end to the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan (contact: [email protected]). From January 11th to 20th, join us at the White House to oppose torture and promote prosecution. And on January 15th, join us on Capitol Hill where the Senate will consider the nomination of the next Attorney General.

5. While the U.S. media debates whether the water torture is really torture, one of the most common torture techniques during the Bush-Cheney years has been applied to a journalist who threw his shoes at Bush: they’ve beaten him and broken his bones. Please contact the media with letters to the editor and phone calls urging the release of Muntadar al-Zaidi, and please contact the Iraqi embassy with the same request at 202-742-1600, extension 136.

Finally, UFPJ has formed a working group on accountability and prosecution. To inquire about joining it, please write to [email protected]

[hobbit709]

1. You really think idiot son will pay any attention now when his track record shows the opposite?

The bastard is going to do what he wants and Cheney tells him and there's nothing any of us can do about it.

[Independent_Liberal]

16. "there's nothing any of us can do about it" - False meme.

There IS stuff we can do and there IS stuff people are doing. People are urging their representatives to co-sponsor Nadler's resolution, some are calling for prosecution, and some are calling for Kucinich to renew his impeachment calls.

Once again, it's this helplessness people feel that makes them think they're powerless. Maybe things would be much different if so many of us didn't have that attitude.

[madeline_con]

2. I signed the petition. Thank you for the heads up! K&R

:kick:

[Dragonfli]

3. Thank you, signed the petition and dig up every email list I still have

I don't know how many of them will sign just because I put their addy in the box, but people on my list tend to believe in justice and Democracy or they wouldn't be there.

[davidswanson]

4. this was a goofed up 1235 version

here's missing item:

http://afterdowningstreet.org/node/38428

[Swamp Rat]

5. k&r

[dysfunctional press]

6. what do you mean no other president did it? like father like son.

iran-contra ring any bells?

[pleah]

7. K&R Signed.

[cascadiance]

8. Jerrold Nadler was great on Democracy Now this morning too! Senator Nadler?...

That was a question that was asked in the interview, and Nadler indicated he was interested too.

I sure would like to see Caroline Kennedy enter the congress too, but the way Nadler spoke, I think he'd be an EXCELLENT choice for Senator. Count me in supporting his selection. If we all support this, perhaps that would also push him higher up the list for this choice too. If he gets in, I'd like to see Caroline Kennedy go for his seat in congress. Either that or if Ted Kennedy were to leave soon, be a potentially a replacement for Massachusetts seat too, though I hope that Ted Kennedy stays in for a long time!...

[LWolf]

9. k&r nt

[slackmaster]

10. As a beneficiary of a Presidential pardon, I view Mr. Swanson's efforts as misguided

I do not believe in limits on the power of the President to pardon individuals, even people I don't like, even his own cronies, even people who committed crimes that he caused.

One interesting thing about a two-party system is that the shoe always ends up on the other foot some day.

[cascadiance]

11. Why? It's not like saying that those that don't receive pardons can't receive appropriate justice..

You can still have your right to a trial and protections of being innocent until proven guilty.

The presidential pardon was designed to allow the president to override what is perceived to be miscarriages of justice in our system in a simpler way than having to go through a court system that might still work against an individual's rights for justice.

It wasn't designed to allow a president to erect an inner circle that is untouchable by the law given his ability to pardon (and some would claim even preemptively pardon) those individuals as a means of protecting them from the consequences of any criminal act they might commit to further the agenda of this inner circle. That's not what democracy is about.

The president would still be able to pardon those not connected to his administration. And I would argue that this law shouldn't just be his administration, but anyone that he's appointed/hired in the course of his term (i.e. U.S. Attorneys, court justices, etc.).

And we really shouldn't have only TWO parties, who I argue have been morphed into one party (though claiming to be two) given the corrupt influence of our current campaign financing/lobbying laws.

[slackmaster]

12. The proper fix is to elect better Presidents

That is our job as voters and politically active people.

:hi:

[cascadiance]

13. We're basically spoonfed who we have choices for for this office...

... and even those who "lose" these races don't contend results that are controversial like the last two presidential candidates didn't do enough (at least Kerry certainly threw in the towel too soon).

We need more accountability to the people and less ability to draw walls around themselves to remove that accountability. That is what the pardoning privilege is subject to abuse for now.

[slackmaster]

14. Once again, whose responsibility is it to fix that problem?

I think it's yours and mine.

[cascadiance]

15. The problem you keep ignoring is HOW!!!

We thought we were electing someone to try and fix this problem, but the system is still gamed when we get more DLCers and impeachment is still "off the table" when they don't feel threatened by public opinion to do otherwise! And likely will be until we get public campaign financing and instant runoff voting amongst other laws that will ENABLE us to be a part of the process that has been TAKEN AWAY from us to affect what's going on.

When we have folks like Nadler in congress seeking to put in controls over the power of these folks that already have too much power to reward themselves with more power without our control, I applaud efforts like his.