Fearmongering is a tried and true tactic of the GOP for getting people to bow to their plans. In the wake of 9/11 they frightened a nation into discarding civil liberties, and they invoked pretend mushroom clouds to scare us into a costly and unnecessary war in Iraq. And now the GOP is up to their old tricks again, whining about how imprisoning and trying terrorists on American soil will lead to the kidnapping of our daughters and other horrors. Well finally, our President and Attorney General seem to have figured out that they hold all the cards and can call the fearmongering out for what it is: cowardice.
Today's remarks by Attorney General Eric Holder cut straight to the chase:
"I'm not scared of what Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has to say at trial," Holder said. "And no one else needs to be afraid either."
"We need not cower in the face of this enemy. Our institutions are strong, our infrastructure is sturdy, our resolve is firm and our people are ready," Holder said. "It is past time to finally act by bringing prosecutions."
For over 200 years, our country has had a Constitution and a means to try criminals, even really mean and scary ones. We have laws and we have punishments. We can no longer be cowed by fear into abandoning our principles of liberty and justice.
It seems surprising that the GOP, with all their machismo and tough talk, is so afraid of a 135 pound guy with a bushy beard. In the end, these whiny old men are behaving like cowards, afraid to embrace American Justice.
Those in the GOP are nowhere near as cowardly as the men who boarded planes on the morning of 9/11/01, but it's about time that someone reminded their constituents of how Real Americans don't run and hide from challenges or threats.
Kudos to Eric Holder.
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Update: List of Cowards and links to their cowardice
Mark Kirk (R-IL), Coward
Don Manzullo (R-IL), Judy Biggert (R-IL) and Peter Roskam (R-IL), Cowards
John Shadegg (R-AZ), Coward
Rudy Giuliani (R), Coward
Pete Hoekstra (R-MI), Coward
Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Coward
Daddy and Baby Dick Cheney (R-Hades), Cowards
Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Coward
Fox News (R), [Not linking those] Bigtime Cowards
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Update 2: Our President echoes the sentiment:
"(What) I think we have to break is this fearful notion that somehow our justice system can't handle these guys," Obama said in an interview with NBC News