At a time when we are celebrating our freedom, how ironic that the following comment would be revealed about a rather obscure member of this administration; "He doesn't care about the Constitution." According to the most recent issue of the New Yorker (
http://www.newyorker.com/...), the person that spoke these words was former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Who was he describing in this statement? Dick Cheney's chief of staff and longtime principal legal adviser, David S. Addington.
According to the story, Powell spoke these words about the Vice President's chief of staff after he first heard of the Administration's warrentless wiretapping of American citizens. Apparently Powell stated "It's Addington, he doesn't care about the Constitution." The story cites some of Addington's influence in this manner:
"He has played a central role in shaping the Administration's legal strategy for the war on terror. Known as the New Paradigm, this strategy rests on a reading of the Constitution that few legal scholars share--namely, that the President, as Commander-in-Chief, has the authority to disregard virtually all previously known legal boundaries, if national security demands it."
As seems to be his M.O. since leaving this Administration, Colin Powell talks tough and acts principled until his comments are made public. It seems that he has repeatedly backpedaled on those occasions. This one is no exception. Thankfully Powell's former top aide has verified the comments about Addington.
John F. Kennedy once said that one should "forgive your enemies, but don't forget their names." Although he may seem like a rather obscure member of this Administration, if he is a threat to our Constitution and the freedoms that we celebrate, Addington is a name that we should not soon forget.
*Oringinally posted on One Wisconsin Now's One Blog at
http://onewisconsinnow.org/...