January 26, 2009
by Robert Fantina

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For anyone seeking to get away with murder, there seems to be a foolproof method: be appointed president of the United States. The lucky person in this office, along with the vice president, cabinet members and advisors, all, it seems, are above the law.

This statement may appear to be extreme; in this Constitutional democracy, are not all men created equal and subject to the same laws, be they millionaire or pauper, president or dog-catcher? The answer, given with a smile to the naïve questioner, is 'no'.

Let us look at the facts; despite what the former (thank heaven) president, George Bush, has always believed about them, facts are required for decision-making.

Fact 1: Mr. Bush invaded a sovereign nation in an offensive action without ever declaring war. His reason was to 'pre-empt' an invasion by Iraq of the U.S. with chemical and biological weapons, which he told the United States Congress and citizenry, and the United Nations and thus the world, that he 'knew' Iraq had. The result of this invasion is the deaths of over 1,000,000 Iraqi men, women and children, and 4,000 U.S. soldiers. Of course, in nearly seven years of war and occupation, no such weapons have been found. One would think that if Iraq had them, they might have found occasion to use them at some point in the last seven years.

In a genuine constitutional democracy, the Congress, created in part to provide checks and balances on the power of the president, would appoint a special prosecutor to determine the following: where did the president get his information? What information, exactly, did he receive? How selective was his use of that information? What motives, other than the protection of the United States ($), might he have had? And finally, were any laws broken?

Fact 2: A disgraced Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who served under Mr. Bush, called the Geneva Conventions 'quaint', relegating these cherished standards to a bygone era, and having no place in U.S. practice today. As a result, with presidential approval, U.S. soldiers engaged in practices that the civilized world sees as torture. President Barack Obama has stated categorically that these practices will cease under his administration. Why then, one might wonder, will Mr. Bush's role in approving torture not be investigated?

Fact 3: Following the disgraceful actions of the 'Committee to Re-elect the President' in the 1970s, Congress enacted regulations that strictly delineated when and how the private telephone conversations of U.S. citizens could be 'wiretapped'. In each case a court order was required. During Mr. Bush's eight-year reign of terror, those laws were also ignored, as government agencies eavesdropped on U.S. citizens by Mr. Bush's order. The question remains: why will Congress not investigate this flagrant violation of the law?

Fact 4: In the U.S. torture chamber located in Cuba, people are denied the basic rights supposedly guaranteed by the Constitution. In secret rendition sites operated by the CIA around the globe, the U.S.'s political prisoners have suffered unspeakable torture, all with the approval of Mr. Bush, and all in violation, not only of international standards, but of U.S. law as well. It would seem that this is worth investigation.

In addition to the criminal aspects of his behaviors, Mr. Bush's actions are not without double-standard. While he invades Iraq freely, apparently on a crusade of some sort, he condemns Russia's invasion of Georgia. At the other extreme, Mr. Bush has supported the current murderous Israeli invasion of the Gaza strip. Regarding Iraq, he claimed to fear the mad-man leadership of oil-rich Iraq, Saddam Hussein, and his use of weapons he 'might' have, but is apparently not concerned about what the mad-man leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-il, might do with the nuclear weapons the world knows he has. One looks in vain for a pattern that does not include how many votes, or how much oil, he believes his support or opposition of any particular invasion may garner.

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One might understand a Congress controlled by the president's party shirking its duty and not appointing a special prosecutor. It is inexcusable, but understandable in the dirty and corrupt partisan world of U.S. government. But the neglect of the opposition party, which came to power in 2006, is both inexcusable and beyond comprehension.

It would be reasonable for U.S. and world citizens to believe that Mr. Obama, supported by a Democratic House of Representatives and Senate, would investigate the many alleged crimes committed by Mr. Bush and his gaggle of cohorts. Yet Mr. Obama does not seem particularly interested in doing so.

Therefore, our original statement holds: one can commit a wide variety of crimes - mass murder, torture, telephone hacking, etc. - and receive no consequences, if one has been appointed president of the United States. Certainly, getting such an appointment is not easy: one must assure that one's brother (a sister will probably do as nicely) is governor of a so-called swing state, and he or she must have sufficient influence to hide as many ballots as necessary. It helps to be wealthy, and without scruples as well.

There may be other means of obtaining the coveted appointment, which will render the receiver of it completely exempt from the law of the land. Future presidents will find these other methods.

There is, however, some risk. If, on a certain election day, the moon is in the seventh house, and Jupiter aligns with Mars, officials might be elected who are familiar with the Constitution, and take their responsibilities seriously. Certainly, this is not a great risk, but in fairness it must be mentioned. If such a Congress were ever to be elected, the performance of its duties would take precedence over the burning desire to do whatever is necessary to be reelected. Such a Congress would hold a president like Mr. Bush accountable for his actions.

But in all likelihood, such a scenario is a fairy tale, an unbelievable story told to children along with 'Harry Potter', a story of wizards with unbridled power running amok around the kingdom.

Mr. Obama was elected president chanting the mantra of change. A significant change would be holding Messrs Bush, Cheney and their corrupt Cabinet accountable for their actions. That he seems unwilling to do so does not bode well for his administration.

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Robert Fantina [send him email] is a long-time activist for peace and social justice. He has worked with the Coalition for Peace Action in New Jersey. Following the 2004 presidential election, he moved to Canada, where he now resides. Robert is the author of Desertion and the American Solder: 1776-2006.

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