There is still hope that the nation's government will again be a three part arrangement. For the last five years it has mostly been run by the Executive branch, with the implicit consent of the Legislature and the Judiciary. We have been fed the line that any limitations placed on Executive power is unpatriotic and works to the benefit of terrorists. The collective backbones of the elected members of the House and Senate, as well as those in the Judiciary, seem to have dissolved. Now there is a stirring, and hope that the Phoenix will rise from its ashes.

A large segment of the populace has been willing to give up its guaranteed rights and freedoms to the support the machinations of the current White House. When the Vice President, with a permanent sneer, speaks out of the left side of his mouth, he receives standing ovations, no matter how badly he distorts reality. Early in his tenure, the president said things would be a lot easier if he were a dictator. Ever since the Twin Towers came down he has acted like the war powers he assumed made him one. The brakes needed to be hit for a long time, but no one in government seemed willing to apply the pressure.

Finally, the Supreme Court has said that the laws of the nation, the Constitution and binding treaties, such as the Geneva Convention regarding the treatment of prisoners, must be followed. The myth of enemy combatants concocted by the White House cannot stand. The kangaroo court system established to deal with them must give way to established law. It is more than Congress and the Judiciary reasserting their powers. It is America recognizing that too much has been given away in the name of safety. We cannot allow the things that help to distinguish us from the rest of the world to erode, and still expect to remain a democracy within a republic.

Senator Specter has raised his sonorous voice to challenge some of the invasions of privacy. He intends to demand answers from the White House on the practice of monitoring our bank accounts and financial transactions as well as eavesdropping on our phone calls. The expected cries and crocodile tears from the Executive branch have been no surprise, but I don't think he will ultimately be deterred. It matters not so much that anything specific in terms of legislation come from these hearings. What matters is, that the unfettered power claimed by the President stands challenged.

We are supposed to be a nation of checks and balances, but for the last five years there has been no balance—since the Supreme Court declared the 2000 election over. It wasn't noticeable because the President spent the first eight months of his term vacationing on his Crawford ranch. Beginning with the bullhorn moment, however, he assumed powers totally out of step with the Constitution. It's a little early to celebrate, but you might want to just hum a few bars of "Happy Days Are Here Again." They just might be.

Posted by Wes Randolph   |   Saturday, July 01, 2006