By MARC McDONALD
Of all the disappointments that progressives have endured in recent years, one of the biggest is the Democrats' failure to pursue any charges of wrongdoing by George W. Bush or Dick Cheney.
And now, with the mid-term elections only five months away, it's clear that the window of opportunity is closing, perhaps forever.
There is a reasonably good chance the GOP will retake the House in November. And if that happens, the Dems can kiss goodbye any opportunities to investigate any wrongdoing by the Bush White House.
Not that the GOP will not show any such restraint if it retakes the House. Republican Rep. Darrell Issa of California is already chomping at the bit to go after President Obama.
If the GOP captures the House, Issa will become chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. He'll have power to subpoena White House officials to appear before the committee under oath.
Issa has made it clear that he plans to vigorously pursue investigations against the White House. And no doubt, other Republicans will do the same. In fact, it's likely the GOP will appoint a special prosecutor with an unlimited budget and subpoena power to go after President Obama as vigorously as Ken Starr pursued Bill Clinton.
It doesn't really matter if such a partisan witch hunt actually uncovers any real wrongdoing by Obama. That's not the point, anyway. The point is to harass the White House and bury it under an avalanche of subpoenas, creating distractions, and making it difficult for Obama to govern.
And while the Republicans have no qualms about pursuing a witch hunt against Democrats on purely cynical political grounds, the Dems lack the backbone to investigate a president who did untold damage to America and its standing in the world.
It's incredible that the Dems have yet to seriously investigate anything that Bush did from 2000 to 2008. The Iraq War fiasco alone deserves a special, major investigation. We already know that Bush lied the nation into a pointless, immoral, $3 trillion war that killed 1.2 million Iraqi civilians.
And that's just for starters when one examines the record of Bush/Cheney.
The list goes on and on. PlameGate. Halliburton. Abu Ghraib. NSA warrantless wiretaps. Failure to comply with Congressional subpoenas. 2000 and 2004 election irregularities. Obstruction of 9/11 investigations.
The American people deserve justice. They deserve to know exactly what happened in the White House during the Bush/Cheney years. They deserve to see the veil of secrecy lifted and the lies exposed.
But thanks to the timid, cowardly Democrats, the window of opportunity for justice is slowly closing shut, perhaps to never re-open again. Bush and Cheney will ride off happily into the sunset, with smirks on their faces, and will likely never face any charges.
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8 comments:
The Punch was Pullosied and she Conya'd US All in what should have been a presidential (PRISON) term ago by not pursuing 2006 IMPEACHMENT just(ly) for Bush's self-admitted and defiantly CONTINUED anti-Constitutional and ILLEGAL wiretapping of US citizens at home Within US. Not timid; CRAVEN!
Not a surprise the GOP has always acted like this. they are the biggest crybabies when they loose power. Look at how, since Obama won the white house, Repugs have just decided not to play ball anymore.
If you are part of the GOP you should be ashamed of your party, except conservobots have no morals or values so I don't expect they have any concept of shame.
"He'll have power to subpoena White House officials to appear before the committee under oath."
Democrats never could get Cheney to appear under oath, could they?
Although this post is about New Jersey's neanderthal Republican governor, it shows that while the Democrats believe in the electoral system, the GOP does not.
"...American people deserve justice..."
"DESERVE"??
We get what we "deserve". We elect, and re-elect, spineless corporate hacks that refuse to admit their own complicity in the actions or horrific monsters, thereby allowing said monsters to blithely walk among the public. And we do nothing.
So be it. We get what we deserve.
Marc,
The likely odds that Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Gonzales, Wolfowitz, and all the rest of that band of war criminals will walk away forever scot-free is a mockery of justice. They, along with the boards of directors of Halliburton and Blackwater should all be tried, convicted, and sentenced to a minimum of 25 years very hard labor. AFTER having first been waterboarded, of course. That they are free men today is a total mockery of justice!
Hi Anon #1: Agreed. And to not pursue criminal charges against Bush/Cheney set a bad precedent.
Ross: good point, the GOP does indeed have thin skin. They can dish it out, but can't take it.
Deciminyan: Yes, definitely, the stolen elections of 2000 and 2004 showed that.
Anon #2, thanks for your comment. The Dems couldn't get Rove to testify, either.
Jado: I agree. We need to take to the streets.
Hi, Jack, yes, what you say is true and a sad fact of 21st Century America,
The Punch was Pullosied and she Conya'd US All in what should have been a presidential http://www.body2die4.com ( PRISON) term http://www.cs5salea.com ago by not pursuing 2006 IMPEACHMENT just(ly) for Bush's self-admitted and defiantly
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