E
elvis
Guest
Dear Folks,
Urge your Senators to oppose Bush attorney general nominee Michael
Mukasey. See Letter from American Freedom Campaign below which
contains a link to send a email to your Senators.
Here is a one minute video of Mukasey trying wiggle out of giving a
straight answer in Senate Hearing about torture at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt8v_GAgOK4
------------------------------
You may not realize it, but the U.S. Senate is about to give the Bush
Administration its blessing to ignore the laws of this nation. If you
do not take action to stop them, our entire system of government may
be in peril.
Within days, the Senate Judiciary Committee is likely to vote on the
nomination of Michael Mukasey to be the next attorney general of the
United States . During his testimony before the committee, Mukasey
made numerous comments that demonstrate his lack of respect for
domestic law and international treaties. He went so far as to say
that the president could ignore federal law whenever he determined --
on his own -- that national security interests trumped the laws of the
land.
Don't sit by quietly and allow this man to become the nation's top law
enforcement official. Take a moment and send an email to your
senators, urging them to oppose Mukasey's nomination. You can send a
pre-written email -- which you should feel free to edit -- by clicking
on the following link:
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2165/t/1027/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=20642
Here is just a sampling of the outrageous assertions made by Mukasey
before the Judiciary Committee:
Mukasey refused to acknowledge that "waterboarding," a technique used
to simulate drowning during interrogations, constitutes torture.
Despite the fact that waterboarding is an infamous torture technique
barred under both international and domestic law, Mukasey said that he
was not familiar with the practice. He could only meekly say, "If
waterboarding is torture, torture is not constitutional." Given the
Bush Administration's practice of having a flexible definition of
torture, confirming a nominee who cannot recognize waterboarding as
torture would be like putting an inmate in charge of the asylum.
Mukasey shockingly claimed that the president should not be bound by
federal law. When asked specifically whether the president is
required to obey federal statutes, he said, "That would have to depend
on whether what goes outside the statute nonetheless lies within the
authority of the president to defend the country." It is that kind of
attitude that led to the use of torture, the abuse of signing
statements, and widespread and unconstitutional warrantless
wiretapping. We are -- and we can only hope we will always be -- a
government of laws, not of man (or woman). It is not up to the
president or other members of the administration to determine whether
federal laws apply in a given situation.
(For a lengthier discussion of the preceding point, see this recent
opinion piece in The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/23/opinion/23rubenfeld.html )
Mukasey indicated that his Department of Justice would likely turn a
blind eye to the Bush Administration practice of ignoring
congressional subpoenas. He was asked whether he would, as attorney
general, direct the U.S. attorney in D.C. to refer contempt charges
against Karl Rove and Harriet Miers to a federal grand jury for
criminal prosecution, as federal law requires should the House or
Senate pass a contempt resolution. Despite the fact that executive
privilege is traditionally asserted to protect certain documents or
conversations -- not to defy completely a subpoena to appear before
Congress -- Mukasey said that the U.S. attorney would have to
determine whether the assertion of privilege was "unreasonable." If
Mukasey does not know that it was unreasonable already, there is
little chance that he will object when a Bush-appointed U.S. attorney
claims that it was not.
When Mukasey was first nominated, he was widely praised for his
balance and intellect. It is now clear that he would be anything but
balanced when it comes to the relationship between Congress and the
executive branch. With respect to his intellect, it appears that
whatever faculties he possesses, they would be employed to further the
Bush Administration's goal of expanding executive power and defying
any entity -- including Congress -- that dares stand in its way.
After the disastrous tenure of Alberto Gonazales, our next attorney
general must be committed to upholding the rule of law.
Unfortunately, Michael Mukasey has demonstrated that he will place the
whims and desires of the executive branch above both domestic and
international law. This is simply unacceptable.
Tell your senators to reject the Mukasey nomination by clicking on the
following link:
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2165/t/1027/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=20642
Thank you for taking action.
Steve
Steve Fox
Acting Campaign Director
American Freedom Campaign
Urge your Senators to oppose Bush attorney general nominee Michael
Mukasey. See Letter from American Freedom Campaign below which
contains a link to send a email to your Senators.
Here is a one minute video of Mukasey trying wiggle out of giving a
straight answer in Senate Hearing about torture at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt8v_GAgOK4
------------------------------
You may not realize it, but the U.S. Senate is about to give the Bush
Administration its blessing to ignore the laws of this nation. If you
do not take action to stop them, our entire system of government may
be in peril.
Within days, the Senate Judiciary Committee is likely to vote on the
nomination of Michael Mukasey to be the next attorney general of the
United States . During his testimony before the committee, Mukasey
made numerous comments that demonstrate his lack of respect for
domestic law and international treaties. He went so far as to say
that the president could ignore federal law whenever he determined --
on his own -- that national security interests trumped the laws of the
land.
Don't sit by quietly and allow this man to become the nation's top law
enforcement official. Take a moment and send an email to your
senators, urging them to oppose Mukasey's nomination. You can send a
pre-written email -- which you should feel free to edit -- by clicking
on the following link:
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2165/t/1027/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=20642
Here is just a sampling of the outrageous assertions made by Mukasey
before the Judiciary Committee:
Mukasey refused to acknowledge that "waterboarding," a technique used
to simulate drowning during interrogations, constitutes torture.
Despite the fact that waterboarding is an infamous torture technique
barred under both international and domestic law, Mukasey said that he
was not familiar with the practice. He could only meekly say, "If
waterboarding is torture, torture is not constitutional." Given the
Bush Administration's practice of having a flexible definition of
torture, confirming a nominee who cannot recognize waterboarding as
torture would be like putting an inmate in charge of the asylum.
Mukasey shockingly claimed that the president should not be bound by
federal law. When asked specifically whether the president is
required to obey federal statutes, he said, "That would have to depend
on whether what goes outside the statute nonetheless lies within the
authority of the president to defend the country." It is that kind of
attitude that led to the use of torture, the abuse of signing
statements, and widespread and unconstitutional warrantless
wiretapping. We are -- and we can only hope we will always be -- a
government of laws, not of man (or woman). It is not up to the
president or other members of the administration to determine whether
federal laws apply in a given situation.
(For a lengthier discussion of the preceding point, see this recent
opinion piece in The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/23/opinion/23rubenfeld.html )
Mukasey indicated that his Department of Justice would likely turn a
blind eye to the Bush Administration practice of ignoring
congressional subpoenas. He was asked whether he would, as attorney
general, direct the U.S. attorney in D.C. to refer contempt charges
against Karl Rove and Harriet Miers to a federal grand jury for
criminal prosecution, as federal law requires should the House or
Senate pass a contempt resolution. Despite the fact that executive
privilege is traditionally asserted to protect certain documents or
conversations -- not to defy completely a subpoena to appear before
Congress -- Mukasey said that the U.S. attorney would have to
determine whether the assertion of privilege was "unreasonable." If
Mukasey does not know that it was unreasonable already, there is
little chance that he will object when a Bush-appointed U.S. attorney
claims that it was not.
When Mukasey was first nominated, he was widely praised for his
balance and intellect. It is now clear that he would be anything but
balanced when it comes to the relationship between Congress and the
executive branch. With respect to his intellect, it appears that
whatever faculties he possesses, they would be employed to further the
Bush Administration's goal of expanding executive power and defying
any entity -- including Congress -- that dares stand in its way.
After the disastrous tenure of Alberto Gonazales, our next attorney
general must be committed to upholding the rule of law.
Unfortunately, Michael Mukasey has demonstrated that he will place the
whims and desires of the executive branch above both domestic and
international law. This is simply unacceptable.
Tell your senators to reject the Mukasey nomination by clicking on the
following link:
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2165/t/1027/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=20642
Thank you for taking action.
Steve
Steve Fox
Acting Campaign Director
American Freedom Campaign
