Day: January 26, 2008

It’s Time to Protect the Constitution

Trish

Sometimes you can’t say it better so you just have to quote the original.

[To the editor of the Florida TCPalm, the newspaper of the Treasure Coast and Palm Beaches]

The list of impeachable offenses that long ago should have summoned Congress to uphold its responsibilities and bring charges in the House continues to grow.

Some suggest the answer to the insults to the Constitution is silence — because the end is near. They may get their wish when the last nail is driven into a Bill of Rights that no longer protects any American.

Is it inconvenient that this particular hot potato would drop in their timorous laps?

Is it inconvenient that this particular hot potato would drop in their timorous laps? We must ask, when is the best time to begin to correct the course of the ship of state and bring to trial the outlaws currently hiding out in an undisclosed location in the executive office.

Again and again, they lie, obstruct, break the law (national and international), and violate the United Nations’ human rights and Geneva Conventions, as well as the bedrock principle of western civilization, habeas corpus. Refusing to answer lawful subpoenas, politicizing the Justice Department, spying on Americans and violating the limited constraints of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Then there is torture and secret prisons — no charges filed, and no attorneys for Americans or foreign nationals.

Timing and scheduling are not the issue; the Constitution is at risk. If President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have forgotten that they have sworn to protect the Constitution, then it is up to Congress and the courts — the other coequal branches of the American government — to remind them this is a nation of laws, not of men.

While some might argue the timing is not ideal, what’s the ideal time to protect the Constitution? Simply, when it needs protecting. We cannot let ourselves off the hook with arguments that this isn’t the best time to protect our civil liberties.

Was frostbitten Valley Forge an appropriate time to defend American rights? Why isn’t today the right time? 

Richard W. Spisak Jr.

Hobe Sound, Fla.

Rumor: Obama Would Nominate John Edwards for Attorney General

Jon Ponder

This could just be Robert Novak making mischief:

Illinois Democrats close to Sen. Barack Obama are quietly passing the word that John Edwards would be named attorney general in an Obama administration.

Installation at the Justice Department of multimillionaire trial lawyer Edwards would please not only the union leaders supporting him for president, but organized labor in general. The unions relish the prospect of an unequivocal labor partisan as the nation’s top legal officer.

It’s considered bad luck, or maybe hubristic, for primary candidates to start naming cabinet officials so the Obama campaign has been mum about Novak’s story.

Funny thing about this is, my friend and fellow political junkie, M. Tuttle, an Obama supporter, mentioned this possibility to me over lunch more than a month ago.

Meet Rush Limbaugh’s New Trophy Girlfriend

Jon Ponder


I don’t know. She seems a bit old for him:

Limbaugh, a vocal advocate of “family values,” has been divorced three times, and is currently unmarried.

Conservative radio talker Rush Limbaugh’s got a new sweetheart – and she’s nearly half his age.

Limbaugh, who turned 57 Jan. 12, told Page Two he’s been dating West Palm Beach resident Kathryn Rogers [who is 31] for the past six months.

Limbaugh, a radio entertainer known for his extreme rightwing views, is a vocal advocate of “family values” who has been divorced three times, and is currently unmarried. He said he met Rogers at a celebrity golf tournament near his home in Florida:

“We met four years ago when Kathryn worked for (golf great) Gary Player. There was a charity tournament. She was rounding up the celebrities to participate in the event. She called me and I played. It was at The Floridian (Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga’s private course near Stuart).

“We’ve stayed in touch since and started dating in the summer.”

Limbaugh introduced the blue-eyed blonde to the world Saturday night with a red carpet walk before dozens of paparazzi at [a charity event held at] Miami Beach’s Ritz-Carlton.

Rogers has the quintessential trophy girlfriend job:

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