Memorial Day is again almost upon us and we gratefully honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation’s survival and well being. Tomorrow, we reflect on the tragedy of war, we lament collectively on a series of individual pictures and memorabilia in the family photo album which terminate abruptly into an empty chair at the family dinner table. Of the fallen, some died for country, others for freedom, and many perished in the simple act of preserving their own life or those of their comrades in arms.
Untold thousands more would fall victim to disease or starvation. Civilians and combatants alike would pay the greatest price. Republicans, Democrats, conservatives, progressives, gay, straight, black, brown, white, man, woman, and yes, so many heroes who fought and died in our name were children. Whatever their differences once were, they’re all equal now, united in part by the underlying principles which they gallantly defended, and which cost them life or limb.
We the People value the right to bear arms, even though it may mean that in some cases our risk of being accidentally or intentionally shot increases; We value the Right of Free Speech and Free Expression, even though it may mean that we are exposed to language or actions that sicken us; We maintain hurdles between arrest, trial, and punishment, even though it may mean that sometimes, the guilty go free; We value a free press and unfettered information exchange, despite the fact that locking down on all media would deprive the most vile of characters, from terrorists to pedophiles, of an essential component in fulfilling their perverse agenda. We the People choose all these things and many more; because we value personal freedom and individual liberty above the potential increased danger and collective inconvenience.
Like a fine wine, our Constitution has aged magnificently. The Founding Document was originally written by and mostly for relatively wealthy, white landowners. It is to our national credit that over the generations, in painstakingly slow increments, it has been extended to encompass the working man, minorities, and women.
But throughout American history, one politician or another has sought to erode our constitutional rights and nibble away at the checks and balances. The current White House, aided by national emergencies, a once compliant congress, and a loyal voting base, has been extraordinarily successful at it. Their time is coming to an end. What comes next?
Election 2008, with Republicans struggling against a disgruntled electorate, that’s what comes next.
Imagine a Democrat in the West Wing who does not shy away from the vastly expanded powers pioneered by the present occupants. It could be Clinton, Obama, Edwards, or someone not even in the race yet. Picture a democratically controlled House and Senate happy to oblige. Worse still, imagine a media savvy Commander-in-Chief that aggressively pushes the envelope even further.
They can wiretap, arrest, imprison, and torture people at will, with no charges filed, no trial offered, no oversight exercised; so they do so liberally. The FBI, DoJ, FCC, INS, and the IRS are retooled by freshly installed liberal ideologues loyal first and foremost to the powers that be, and each tasked to ruthlessly decimate right-wing groups, conservative churches, and opposing political organizations, while fast tracking voter registration at progressive churches and among likely democratic leaning immigrants. A devastating "War Tax" is levied selectively on the Republican funding base –and anyone who objects is aiding the terrorists and/or not supporting the troops.
Imagine – subpoenas directed at the President and the Cabinet are rarely issued, routinely ignored, and even the most watered down laws affecting administration policy are put aside with signing statements. Imagine Executive Privilege used aggressively and liberally.
You may ask by what black magic could such a distinctly Un-American agenda overtake and surpass the established and most cherished values of the greatest nation on earth? You should know: You were the magician’s assistant. It was mostly conservatives who created this incarnation of a once benign Unitary Executive. It is this White House which opened the door. And all signs indicate they intend to leave that door wide open behind them, for anyone to walk through.
Armed with all the nifty rhetorical, legislative, and Constitutional tools of evasion left laying around by Bush, a clever Democratic Administration can turn the tables drastically on you from the moment they're sworn in. You might find yourself deprived of a media megaphone for the first time in decades. The pragmatic corporate funding base will abandon you in a heartbeat if they think it will increase their stock price by a quarter point. As a disliked minority with strong ties to neoconservatives you'll have no effective representation in Congress. Even as a moderate and rational conservative you'll find yourself smack dab in the middle of the most lopsided, hostile political environment since the demise of the Hoover Administration.
If you blindly trust the dems not to abuse that kind of power, or if you're sure Congress will nobly step forward and dismantle BushCo's machinary in the nick of time, right on the precipice of a democratic victory, you trust them a hell of a lot more than I do. You better believe it can happen. In fact the Bush Administration working hand in hand with the neoconservative and traditional conservative apparatus have virtually guaranteed that some version of it will.
America needs a robust, credible, opposition party to actuate the machinery our Constitution readily provides. It is the fuel powering our engine of democracy. It is what the fallen we commemorate tomorrow swore to protect. On this one issue you might find allies among members of the progressive community. But the longer you wait, the more tempted some of the constituents in my progressive caucus are going to be to just sit on the fence and see where the chips fall.
The electoral clock is ticking, or maybe I should say the bell tolls. And it tolls for thee.