Confronting The Rogue President

by tristero

If you think Republicans took the day off in 2000, 20002, and 2004, think again. Get up off your asses. Here we go:

What is the most important issue facing the country that the Democrats must tackle? The rogue presidency of George W. Bush.

Anyone who thinks this will be easy or pleasant needs to get to a certified physician, fast. Nevertheless, the path to staunching the blood in Iraq and America’s shameful complicity in it, the path to preventing possible nuclear war with Iran, the path to reversing the evisceration of the Constitution — all these and so many more converge at the flat feet of the Worst President Ever. And it will not be easy to rein him in.

I think it’s a pretty safe bet, even for William Bennett, that Bush will try to precipitate a constitutional crisis over the limits of presidential power (from his standpoint, none) in the next two years. Having lived through Watergate, and remembering how terrifying (even if eventually, exhilirating) it was, I am personally dreading it. Imagine how the Dems in Congress feel.

So let us make this clear to them:

If George Bush wants to continue to wreck America, then there is no way anyone in Congress with a modicum of self-respect and love of country should let him get away with it.

That’s easy to say, but what if it means a dangerous constitutional crisis?

Don’t answer right away, folks. Stop. Think.

The standard cliche American response to these kinds of challenges is an instantaneous, adrenaline-fueled shout of, “Bring it on!” The intense desire to engage the enemy, mano a mano, to stop all the pussy-footing, and let’s get down to it! We can win this thing! Plans? Plans??! I don’t need no stinkin’ plans! I’m right, I’ll win and I’ll just let the weak plan what happens then.

And we know how well that works. So step 1 in the post 11/07/06 world is for Dems and liberals not to act like drooling violent morons – because we’re not, and anyway, it never works outside a Stallone movie – and think this through. To paraphrase Susan Sontag, we know we’re strong. We are going to have to be smart.

In order to confront an out of control, delusional, and ruthless president, the Democrats are going to have to be in control, levelheaded, and prepared to do whatever it takes.

What does “whatever it takes” mean? Well, has everyone forgotten what happened during Schiavo?

Hours after a judge ordered that Terri Schiavo was not to be removed from her hospice, a team of state agents were en route to seize her and have her feeding tube reinserted – but they stopped short when local police told them they would enforce the judge’s order, The Miami Herald has learned.

Agents of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement told police in Pinellas Park, the small town where Schiavo lies at Hospice Woodside, on Thursday that they were on the way to take her to a hospital to resume her feeding.

For a brief period, local police, who have officers at the hospice to keep protesters out, prepared for what sources called “a showdown.”

In the end, the squad from the FDLE and the Department of Children & Families backed down, apparently concerned about confronting local police outside the hospice.

…

…agencies answering directly to Gov. Jeb Bush had planned to use a wrinkle in Florida law that would have allowed them to legally get around the judge’s order. The exception in the law allows public agencies to freeze a judge’s order whenever an agency appeals it.

…

Participants in the high-stakes test of wills, who spoke with The Herald on the condition of anonymity, said they believed the standoff could ultimately have led to a constitutional crisis and a confrontation between dueling lawmen.

“There were two sets of law enforcement officers facing off, waiting for the other to blink,” said one official with knowledge of Thursday morning’s activities.

In jest, one official said local police discussed “whether we had enough officers to hold off the National Guard.”

Some jest. Anyway, that’s what “whatever it takes” means. The risk of an armed confrontation between different parts of the federal government.

Now, don’t just say, “Fine with me, he wants it, it’s his fault, let’s stop talking about it and go for it!” Think about what that means. And the consequences of what could have happened had the (Jeb) Bush guys not backed down during Schiavo.

Most importantly, forget about thinking you have the courage to risk that kind of confrontation. You don’t. I don’t. No one does. Even if it shows beyond a doubt how far the Bush administration is prepared to go, the bizarre Schiavo confrontation was an incredibly stupid mistake. And we are all goddammed lucky it didn’t get worse.

No. Think about how we can stop Bush, who is at least as stupid and impulsive as his brother, from provoking another armed confrontation, this time at the national level. And still get him to behave like a president and not Rufus T. Firefly.

It’s not easy, but it has to be done. it is quite possible to confront and stop Bush while also not provoking a repeat of Schiavo.

Bush will start testing the new Congress as soon as he can. He will claim the power to do something beyond the normal range of the Executive, and it will be nothing anyone should make a constitutional crisis over. Congress will let him get away with it. Why go to the mat over something relatively trivial – like phone records, say, of calls between Jeff Gannon and the White House to see where Gannon received the inside info about the Plame case?

But they shouldn’t tolerate any attempt to exceed the powers of the presidency, not matter how seemingly unimportant. Because Bush will, as he has repeatedly done, raise the stakes until he is able to grab the power he really wants and is met only with a demoralized and cowed opposition.

Reality will be far messier than any what ifs. But this is what I think the position should be for the new Congress. Bush can, and will execute the duties of the office of the president but Congress should let him get away with nothing that exceeds the power of his office. No matter what he does or threatens to do.

Bush thinks he’s king. It is high time to inform him that he holds a far greater office and he cannot be permitted to demean that office by acting like a mere king.

And while Congress is reining him in, they must be smart about it, find a way to prevent Bush from exceeding any of his powers while, at the same time, foiling Bush’s desire to stage Gunfight at the OK Corral in Washington, DC, with live ammo.

It’s not gonna be easy…