President is Trampling on Civil Rights

According to articles on several web sites here and in Europe, Mr Bush met with top GOP leaders and staff members last month to review their strategy for convincing Congress to renew the PATRIOT Act. Many members of Congress, including some in Mr Bush's own party, object to renewing the law because they say some provisions trample on Americans' civil liberties as spelled out in the Constitution. When reminded by an aide that there is a valid case that provisions in this law undermine the Constitution, Mr Bush screamed "Stop throwing the Constitution in my face, it's just a 'g_d_' piece of paper!" The words are Mr Bush's - not mine. That statement, if true, makes it clear what little respect Mr Bush has for the foundation of all our laws and which he has twice taken an oath to "uphold and defend." Many members of Congress and legal scholars consider some of Mr Bush's acts illegal: invading a sovereign country that posed no imminent threat; torturing detainess, some of whom died; holding Americans prisoner without preferring charges; kidnapping foreign nationals outside the United States and shipping them to countries that practice torture; and approving spying on Americans without a court order. Mr Bush seems to have mistaken the definition of "president" with that of "king." Clearly, he has overstepped the limits of his position as commander-in-chief which only makes him the top official in the military - he does not have the power to circumvent laws that apply to private citizens. Mr Bush has shown the people of this great country the utmost disrespect a public official can show. And for that, he needs to be made accountable.

NICK REINA

Milmay, New Jersey

Letter published in the Daily Journal, Decmeber 28, 2005