Cheney vs. Obama on National Security

Do I even need to ask who is the more trustworthy here?

President Obama and former vice president Richard B. Cheney yesterday gave the country the national security debate it never had during last year's campaign, with the two outlining starkly divergent views of American power and the presidency in the fight against terrorism.

In an extraordinary set of speeches, the still-new president, who refers often to the problems he inherited from his predecessor, and the previous administration's most forceful spokesman laid out their positions just minutes apart in locations separated by barely a mile. The virtual debate touched on Congress and the courts, interrogation tactics and truth commissions, and competing assessments of the nation's post-Sept. 11 history that are currently informing the debate in Washington over how best to balance public safety and civil liberties.

Presidential scholars could not recall another moment when consecutive administrations intersected so early and in such a public way.

Because we've never had a previous administration so corrupt!

In my lifetime I can think of only Nixon and Reagan who played fast and loose with the Constitution. Nixon is the epitome of why the founders included a process for impeachment. Nixon used the full power of the executive office for his own personal gain. Had he not resigned he would have surely been impeached. And I think his waiting so long damaged the country in a way we have never truly recovered from.

Reagan also used the powers of the presidency to advance a personal agenda -- one that would set this country on a course that would eventually lead to the brink of a second great depression. Regulations were imposed on corporations and the banking industry during FDR's administration for a reason. To prevent another great depression -- and for 50 years they worked! Then along came Ronnie, hell bent on deregulation and now look at where we are.

I've said before that I never thought there could be a president worse than Nixon or Reagan, but George W. Bush proved me wrong. He is the worst combination of the two. He used his pulpit to steal from the poor to benefit the rich. And his partner in crime, Dick Cheney, helped.

Cheney's fingerprints are all over the tortured prisoners at Guantanamo.

We may be in a serious depression, but that should not prevent the truth from coming out -- or from convicting Bush-Cheney for war crimes.

Impeach Cheney Movement Growing

Both Bush and Cheney need to go, but it certainly makes sense to impeach Cheney first. Who would want even a second of an "official" Cheney presidency. It's bad enough that he's been calling all the shots behind the scenes.

Liberals have been frustrated over the apparent lack of interest by anyone in Congress to take action. Well, it seems there is interest -- you're just not hearing about in from the main stream media.

Crooks and Liars has an official "Thank You" from Rep. Robert Wexler. Wexler (D-FL), Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) -- one of my favorites! -- and Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) co-authored an op-ed calling for impeachment hearings for the Vice President.

The tremendous response to my call for impeachment hearings for Vice President Cheney confirms that the Bush Administration and Vice President Cheney must be held accountable. I have been overwhelmed by the netroots support for my call for impeachment hearings and for my website - WexlerWantsHearings.com. As of Monday afternoon - after only four days - over 80,000 people have signed up to show their support for impeachment hearings.

Wexler was "shocked when no newspaper would publish" it. Wexler went on to say:

It is not every day that three members of the House Judiciary Committee set out a substantive case for impeachment hearings against the sitting Vice President. Yet, the national media yawned.

Wexler, Baldwin and Gutierrez recognize that it's "the constitutional duty of Congress to investigate the serious charges that have been leveled against Vice President Cheney."

Originally, my goal was to gain 50,000 online signatures on behalf of impeachment hearings. Today, our goal is 250,000 supporters.
The charges against Vice President Cheney are too serious dismiss without hearings. If we band together, we can make focus the nation’s attention on this critical issue. Let’s continue to make our voices heard.

More than 86,600 had signed on at WexlerWantsHearings.com when I last checked. Do what you can to spread the word. Encourage everyone to visit the web site and sign on!

Don't pass GO Libby -- go directly to prison

Too bad the rulinging didn't say: Go directly to jail, do not pass GO ... but DO pay $250,000 in fines.

Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for lying and obstructing the CIA leak investigation. The case revealed a White House obsessed with criticism of its decision to go to war.

The Associate Press reports:

Libby, the highest-ranking White House official sentenced to prison since the Iran-Contra affair, asked for leniency, but a federal judge said he would not reward someone who hindered the investigation into the exposure of a CIA operative. The operative's husband had accused the administration of twisting intelligence to justify the Iraq war.

Defense attorneys sought to have the sentence delayed until appeals run out. A delay also would give Bush more time to consider calls from Libby's allies to pardon the longtime aide.

Walton said he saw no reason to put the sentence on hold but agreed to consider it. He scheduled a hearing for a week from Thursday.

So, no date has been set for when Libby must report to prison -- but, as he was leaving the court house a protester shouted: "You should go right to jail!"

I couldn't agree more!