As mentioned in the above articles, all Bush has to do to wiretap our phones legally, when there is probable cause, is to get permission from the special court set up just for that purpose. It’s almost always granted. He has instant access to that court, if he needs it, and if justifiable, he can immediately instigate wiretaps, as long as within three days, he petitions the court for the wiretap warrants. It’s a matter of checks and balances. Checks and balances are vital to democracy. Without them we have a dictatorship. We have no freedoms, if he decides to take power that is not his and disregards our liberties guaranteed by our constitution.

We are more at risk from Al Qaeda now than we were before Bush invaded Iraq. Iraq did not attack us. Al Qaeda did. The world was behind us when we went after Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. The world even felt sorry for us. The world turned against us, and the determination of Al Qaeda to wipe out us heathens grew when Bush invaded Iraq. Because of him the problem multiplied exponentially. We are less safe now than we have ever been before, because of G. W. Bush.

Many scholars say that Bush has broken the law. The laws we live by are recorded in the Constitution of the United States. He was elected to uphold this constitution. He swore to do so when he took office, twice. It is not up to him to take the law into his own hands. As was reported in the news:
quote:
Feingold said it was "absurd" that Bush said he relied on his inherent power as president to authorize the wiretaps.
"If that's true, he doesn't need the Patriot Act because he can just make it up as he goes along. I tell you, he's President George Bush, not King George Bush. This is not the system of government we have and that we fought for," Feingold told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.
It is hard to trust someone who thinks he is above the law. How could I possibly think someone like that has the best interests of this country and it’s citizens at heart. The only citizens I’ve seen that he takes to heart is the corporate citizen, at the expense of the American citizen.

As I was growing up I was taught to believe that presidents were heroes, starting with George Washington, who could not tell a lie. We are a nation of good and wholesome people. But George is teaching our children that lying and cheating are okay, and that if you have enough power you can get away with anything. Is that what you want for your children?

[ December 20, 2005, 01:47 AM: Message edited by: Vi ]