Guest #1 April 1, 2006 Bush preps historic Third Term - memo It's war. It's a 'Continuity Presidency' By Thomas C Greene in Washington Published Saturday 1st April 2006 10:33 GMTExclusive The US Department of Justice (DoJ) and the office of the White House Counsel are preparing a draft document laying out the President's wartime authority to remain in office past 2008, The Register has learned. The scheme is described as an emergency "continuity presidency," made necessary by the extraordinary circumstances and unique challenges of protecting the United States from the threat of international terrorism. "The world changed on 9/11," a confidential DoJ memo obtained by The Register explains, "and no Administration is US history is better suited to adapt productively to those changes than this one. "The Attorney General supports the basic framework in the White House Counsel's draft proposal for a future Executive Order establishing a Continuity Presidency, with two provisos: 1. There must be at least the appearance of a time limit, which the AG believes might be satisfied by tying the duration of the Continuity Presidency to the duration of the GWOT [global war on terrorism]; and 2. The House and Senate Majority Leaders and the Chairpersons of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees must issue a written certification that they have approved the plan. "AG does not believe that the plan will succeed unless those conditions can be met. Suggest you liase with [the White House office of] Legislative Affairs and get their sense of the liklihood that the key Members will work with us." The memo is signed Christine McIntyre, Special Assistant to the United States Attorney General, and is addressed to Philip Van Zandt, Special Assistant to White House Counsel Harriet Miers. A second memo leaked to The Register, this time from DoJ Assistant McIntyre to Jock Mahoney, Special Assistant to US Solicitor General Paul Clement, and to Philip Van Zandt at the White House, anticipates an immediate Supreme Court challenge to the scheme, and offers a few suggestions for defending the Administration's action. "We will be attacked on the basis of Article II Section 1, and on Amendment XXII," McIntyre writes. "Thus it is absolutely crucial that the anticipated Executive Order for a Continuity Presidency make no mention whatsoever of a 'Third Term.' This will eliminate appeals to Amendment XXII, and leave us free to focus our attack on Article II Section 1 alone. Thus, the Executive Order has got to be framed as a necessary - and Congressionally authorized - extension of the President's Second Term, so that we can base our arguments on the Joint Resolution and Article II Section 2. "Above all," McIntyre warns, "we must emphasize that the 2001 Joint Resolution, in which Congress empowered the President to 'use all necessary and appropriate force ... to prevent any future acts of international terrorism against the United States,' and Article II Section 2 of the United States Constitution, give the President ample authority to issue an Executive Order for a Continuity Presidency for the duration of the GWOT, to exercise fully his mandate to protect the American people from harm. "We must also press the national security angle hard and emphasize that the United States would be endangered severely by a change of government at this time. America cannot afford to give the terrorists such an opportunity." Now, this might not seem like much for the Bushies to pin their imperial hopes on, but the White House has already succeeded in expanding the 2001 Joint Resolution, and Article II Section 2 of the Constitution, to include virtually any step, legal and illegal, that the Administration wishes to take in prosecuting the war on terror. For a recent example we might recall repeated White House and DoJ assertions that the Joint Resolution and Article II Section 2 authorize the President to eavesdrop on US citizens in clear violation of federal law. And neither Congress nor the Supremes have shown any inclination to rein him in. So, as sketchy as the justification is, if the Congressional leadership and the US Supreme Court should capitulate to Bush, as they have tended to do in the past, it seems possible that he might remain in the White House past the expiration of his second term, as he obviously intends. The Register contacted the offices of the US Attorney General and the White House Counsel, and both declined to comment. Neither denied the memos, however. Are they a hoax? We consulted renowned constitutional scholar Bud Jamison, of the prestigious Washington legal firm Horowitz Feinberg & Horowitz, for insight. "I don't think they're a hoax, but I also don't think that there's anything here for the public to worry about, except the sad comment it makes on the current Administration," Jamison told The Register. "I think we can assume - even for the sake of argument alone - that there is a draft proposal along these lines circulating. Obviously, we can only speculate about the full content and wording of the proposal, but based on the comments in these memos, I think we can do that fairly productively," Jamison said. "First, the fact that this proposal is in the works so far in advance of the 2008 elections suggests that real care is being taken, which in turn suggests that President Bush is, for the moment, anyway, quite serious about attempting this coup d'état. "If it ever becomes public, I suspect we'll find that the proposed executive order will postpone the 2008 elections - citing the exigencies of war - rather than attempt to do battle with Article II Section 1 and the 22nd Amendment," Jamison explained. "But, Constitutionally speaking, Bush hasn't got a leg to stand on. Article II Section 1 states plainly that the president is elected to a four-year term, and the 22nd Amendment states plainly that he can serve only two terms. He's looking for weasel room, and he thinks that merely extending his second term, rather than declaring a third term, will give it to him. He's mistaken. "I can't imagine even a sympathetic Supreme Court going along with this - although I'll admit that I was surprised when they handed him the Florida election in 2000. Still, what's being proposed here is literally a coup d'état; the Court is not going to sanction it, even if key members of Congress do. "If you think about what would happen, it quickly becomes a reductio ad absurdum, Jamison explained. "Consider the practical problems: the election might well go on in defiance of the executive order. That might leave Bush no alternative but to declare martial law. He would need support from the military in that case, and I doubt he would get it. Remember, military personnel swear an oath to the Constitution first, and to the President second. Where the two are in conflict, most will consider the Constitution paramount. "But suppose he were to let the election go on, and merely declare its results invalid, say with another executive order. Even a Republican House is going to impeach him, and even a Republican Senate is going to convict him. He'll be the ex-President in a heartbeat," Jamison predicted. "And suppose he still refuses to leave? The Secret Service might forcibly eject him from the White House when the Senate conviction is handed down. What a gross public humiliation that would be, to be seen kicking and screaming as he's carried from the building. Bush can't risk it, especially with his grandiose personality. "The best he could hope for is a military faction that would support him and defend the White House third-world-style, but there will certainly be a larger faction that will oppose him. Bush would become a prisoner in the White House, with his little Praetorian Guard. He'd be irrelevant. Congress would take over all of the day-to-day business of running the federal bureaucracy, and cut off money and other supplies to the White House. They'd probably cut the electricity, too. "So you can see how quickly this becomes absurd. Bush will either finish his second term on schedule, or he'll be out of the White House before his second term expires." "I'm sure he'll go with option one," Jamison chuckled. "But," Jamison continued, "Bush is so accustomed to having his way, and he exists in such a weird bubble of manufactured reality, that I can picture him believing that his second term could be extended. Still, I'm confident that someone among the gaggle of boot-licking toadies he's surrounded himself with will muster the nerve to sit him down and explain the facts of life. "This proposal will never see the light of day. It may take a while for reality to sink in, but once Bush appreciates the potential for grotesque public humiliation that he's courting, he'll kill it," Jamison concluded. As for the inevitable political fallout from the leaked memos alone, Jamison sees little for Bush to worry about. "It shows incredibly poor judgment and galling arrogance on the Administration's part, but that's nothing new. And you can be sure that Bush and Cheney have got complete deniability in this little caper," he said. "And that goes for Gonzales, Miers, and Clement too. The five or six people involved will be sacked, and the press will be told that the affair was merely the unauthorized creation of a handful of over-zealous underlings acting on their own. The Republican-controlled Congress will decline to investigate, and the issue will soon be forgotten. A break in the Natalee Holloway investigation is all it takes for a story like that to be erased permanently from the news." All too true, we have got to allow. ®"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gravitymaster 0 #2 April 1, 2006 Ahhh... starting out the day in fine form. - Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gawain 0 #3 April 1, 2006 QuoteAhhh... starting out the day in fine form. - Indeed, such a fine aroma too. So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright 'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life Make light! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wmw999 2,600 #4 April 1, 2006 Looks like it smells like it nope, not gonna taste it Nicely done, by the way -- it's even long enough that I quit reading after awhile Wendy W.There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
narcimund 0 #5 April 1, 2006 The only thing I find improbable about this story is that the memos would get leaked. First Class Citizen Twice Over Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Samurai136 0 #6 April 1, 2006 Gotta be an April Fool's joke."Buttons aren't toys." - Trillian Ken Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbrown 26 #7 April 1, 2006 QuoteQuoteAhhh... starting out the day in fine form. More like starting out the month of April - I hope. It's just a little too close to possible. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Amazon 7 #8 April 1, 2006 QuoteMore like starting out the month of April - I hope. It's just a little too close to possible. I figure it will be an October Fools Joke on the American people in 2008. Anyone wanna lay odds there will be some "AQ" attack about then??? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Nightingale 0 #9 April 1, 2006 Have you seen "V for Vendetta"? I saw it last night, and it hit WAY too close to home. Interesting thing is that the graphic novel it was based on was written in 1982. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Amazon 7 #10 April 1, 2006 Yup Saw it... my my my the future is going to be fun. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Gravitymaster 0 #11 April 1, 2006 QuoteQuoteMore like starting out the month of April - I hope. It's just a little too close to possible. I figure it will be an October Fools Joke on the American people in 2008. Anyone wanna lay odds there will be some "AQ" attack about then??? Yeah. I got a hundred bucks that say's there is no major terrorist attack inside the U.S. mainland in October 2008. Major terrorist attack defined as a chemical, biological or nuclear weapon detonated. You in? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites freethefly 6 #12 April 2, 2006 QuoteGotta be an April Fool's joke. I thought the same. Then I did a search and found reference to this dating back to 2003. Hmmmm."...And once you're gone, you can't come back When you're out of the blue and into the black." Neil Young Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Nightingale 0 #13 April 2, 2006 Well, flying planes into the twin towers wasn't exactly chemical, biological, or nuclear. More...aeronautic? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites tbrown 26 #14 April 2, 2006 QuoteQuoteGotta be an April Fool's joke. I thought the same. Then I did a search and found reference to this dating back to 2003. Hmmmm. Not to be a history bore, but I will anyway.... The only comparable situation I can think of would be the 1864 general elections, which many of Lincoln's political advisors urged the President to cancel. There was a Civil War on, the entire south was in rebellion and it was (and still is) the bloodiest conflict the nation had ever found itself in. The outcome was still not clear, although by 1864 it seemed to be tipping in favor of the Union. Lincoln rejected these suggestions out of hand. He realized that the war could not be won without his being re-elected in a free and fairly contested election. Lincoln insisted that the election would go forward and that he expected an opposition candidate who would be critical of his administration and the war. The Democrats nominated George B. McClellan, who had commanded the Army of the Potomac in the earlier years of the war. McClellan ran as a peace candidate, a general who had fought in this war and had turned against it (sound familiar ?). Lincoln for his part chose a DEMOCRAT for a running mate, Senator Andrew Johnson of Tennessee. Although Tennessee had succeeded and was fighting as a Confederate state, the succession was never recognized as legal and the Confederacy never recognized as a country. Since Tennessee was still legally a U.S. State, Senator Johnson kept his seat in the Senate and went to work every morning as a loyal U.S. Senator. Lincoln chose Johnson because he was both a Democrat and a loyal Southerner. Needless to say, Lincoln easily won re-election, largely due to write in ballots cast by Union soldiers. Bush could learn a lot from Lincoln, but unfortunately he doesn't read history or newspapers. I'm not even sure if he CAN read. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Andy9o8 3 #15 April 2, 2006 QuoteMajor terrorist attack defined as a chemical, biological or nuclear weapon detonated. Suggest you broaden your definition. Look what was done with a truckload of common fertilizer & diesel fuel in OKC. Or a coordinated series of knapsack-sized bombs in London. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Amazon 7 #16 April 2, 2006 I am in.. but how am I going to collect when you shut down all travel... the internet etc when Martial law is declared.???? Tricky Guy Karl.. tricky Guy... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Nightingale 0 #17 April 2, 2006 Wouldn't fertilizer fall under the chemical category? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites shropshire 0 #18 April 2, 2006 If that was the case then all exxplosives would be classed as chemical weapons.... I guess. Would a more accurate definition of a chemical weapon be one where by the toxin effect does the damage? (.)Y(.) Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Gravitymaster 0 #19 April 2, 2006 QuoteI am in.. but how am I going to collect when you shut down all travel... the internet etc when Martial law is declared.???? Tricky Guy Karl.. tricky Guy... I'll make a special exception for you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Gravitymaster 0 #20 April 2, 2006 QuoteQuoteMajor terrorist attack defined as a chemical, biological or nuclear weapon detonated. Suggest you broaden your definition. Look what was done with a truckload of common fertilizer & diesel fuel in OKC. Or a coordinated series of knapsack-sized bombs in London. I'm talking about an attack large enough to justify martial law being invoked. - Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Andy9o8 3 #21 April 3, 2006 QuoteI'm talking about an attack large enough to justify martial law being invoked. Aw, come on, you're defining it so narrowly it's impossible for you to lose the bet. I mean, even 9/11 wasn't "large enough to justify martial law being invoked". Your bets are no fun. I'd rather cheat you at poker. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Gravitymaster 0 #22 April 3, 2006 QuoteQuoteI'm talking about an attack large enough to justify martial law being invoked. Aw, come on, you're defining it so narrowly it's impossible for you to lose the bet. I mean, even 9/11 wasn't "large enough to justify martial law being invoked". Your bets are no fun. I'd rather cheat you at poker. I'm only making the bet in keeping with the topic being discussed ie. "Continuity" and the justification of a 3rd term for Bush. Anything short of a major terrorist attack would lack enough rationalization. Of course, if you accept my parameters, I'd be happy to include you in the pool too. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Guest #23 April 3, 2006 Boy, it's amazing how fast an April Fool's Day gag can get out of hand. mh"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites narcimund 0 #24 April 3, 2006 QuoteBoy, it's amazing how fast an April Fool's Day gag can get out of hand. The problem with this one is it's too plausible. First Class Citizen Twice Over Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites MrBounce 0 #25 April 3, 2006 QuoteQuoteBoy, it's amazing how fast an April Fool's Day gag can get out of hand. The problem with this one is it's too plausible. Not necessarily plausible, there's just enough knee-jerk reactions from both sides of the camp to keep it interesting! Gavin Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. If you don't take it out and use it, its going to rust. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Prev 1 2 Next Page 1 of 2 Join the conversation You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account. Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible. Reply to this topic... × Pasted as rich text. Paste as plain text instead Only 75 emoji are allowed. × Your link has been automatically embedded. Display as a link instead × Your previous content has been restored. Clear editor × You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL. Insert image from URL × Desktop Tablet Phone Submit Reply 0
Amazon 7 #8 April 1, 2006 QuoteMore like starting out the month of April - I hope. It's just a little too close to possible. I figure it will be an October Fools Joke on the American people in 2008. Anyone wanna lay odds there will be some "AQ" attack about then??? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nightingale 0 #9 April 1, 2006 Have you seen "V for Vendetta"? I saw it last night, and it hit WAY too close to home. Interesting thing is that the graphic novel it was based on was written in 1982. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Amazon 7 #10 April 1, 2006 Yup Saw it... my my my the future is going to be fun. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gravitymaster 0 #11 April 1, 2006 QuoteQuoteMore like starting out the month of April - I hope. It's just a little too close to possible. I figure it will be an October Fools Joke on the American people in 2008. Anyone wanna lay odds there will be some "AQ" attack about then??? Yeah. I got a hundred bucks that say's there is no major terrorist attack inside the U.S. mainland in October 2008. Major terrorist attack defined as a chemical, biological or nuclear weapon detonated. You in? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
freethefly 6 #12 April 2, 2006 QuoteGotta be an April Fool's joke. I thought the same. Then I did a search and found reference to this dating back to 2003. Hmmmm."...And once you're gone, you can't come back When you're out of the blue and into the black." Neil Young Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nightingale 0 #13 April 2, 2006 Well, flying planes into the twin towers wasn't exactly chemical, biological, or nuclear. More...aeronautic? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbrown 26 #14 April 2, 2006 QuoteQuoteGotta be an April Fool's joke. I thought the same. Then I did a search and found reference to this dating back to 2003. Hmmmm. Not to be a history bore, but I will anyway.... The only comparable situation I can think of would be the 1864 general elections, which many of Lincoln's political advisors urged the President to cancel. There was a Civil War on, the entire south was in rebellion and it was (and still is) the bloodiest conflict the nation had ever found itself in. The outcome was still not clear, although by 1864 it seemed to be tipping in favor of the Union. Lincoln rejected these suggestions out of hand. He realized that the war could not be won without his being re-elected in a free and fairly contested election. Lincoln insisted that the election would go forward and that he expected an opposition candidate who would be critical of his administration and the war. The Democrats nominated George B. McClellan, who had commanded the Army of the Potomac in the earlier years of the war. McClellan ran as a peace candidate, a general who had fought in this war and had turned against it (sound familiar ?). Lincoln for his part chose a DEMOCRAT for a running mate, Senator Andrew Johnson of Tennessee. Although Tennessee had succeeded and was fighting as a Confederate state, the succession was never recognized as legal and the Confederacy never recognized as a country. Since Tennessee was still legally a U.S. State, Senator Johnson kept his seat in the Senate and went to work every morning as a loyal U.S. Senator. Lincoln chose Johnson because he was both a Democrat and a loyal Southerner. Needless to say, Lincoln easily won re-election, largely due to write in ballots cast by Union soldiers. Bush could learn a lot from Lincoln, but unfortunately he doesn't read history or newspapers. I'm not even sure if he CAN read. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 3 #15 April 2, 2006 QuoteMajor terrorist attack defined as a chemical, biological or nuclear weapon detonated. Suggest you broaden your definition. Look what was done with a truckload of common fertilizer & diesel fuel in OKC. Or a coordinated series of knapsack-sized bombs in London. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Amazon 7 #16 April 2, 2006 I am in.. but how am I going to collect when you shut down all travel... the internet etc when Martial law is declared.???? Tricky Guy Karl.. tricky Guy... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nightingale 0 #17 April 2, 2006 Wouldn't fertilizer fall under the chemical category? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shropshire 0 #18 April 2, 2006 If that was the case then all exxplosives would be classed as chemical weapons.... I guess. Would a more accurate definition of a chemical weapon be one where by the toxin effect does the damage? (.)Y(.) Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gravitymaster 0 #19 April 2, 2006 QuoteI am in.. but how am I going to collect when you shut down all travel... the internet etc when Martial law is declared.???? Tricky Guy Karl.. tricky Guy... I'll make a special exception for you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gravitymaster 0 #20 April 2, 2006 QuoteQuoteMajor terrorist attack defined as a chemical, biological or nuclear weapon detonated. Suggest you broaden your definition. Look what was done with a truckload of common fertilizer & diesel fuel in OKC. Or a coordinated series of knapsack-sized bombs in London. I'm talking about an attack large enough to justify martial law being invoked. - Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 3 #21 April 3, 2006 QuoteI'm talking about an attack large enough to justify martial law being invoked. Aw, come on, you're defining it so narrowly it's impossible for you to lose the bet. I mean, even 9/11 wasn't "large enough to justify martial law being invoked". Your bets are no fun. I'd rather cheat you at poker. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gravitymaster 0 #22 April 3, 2006 QuoteQuoteI'm talking about an attack large enough to justify martial law being invoked. Aw, come on, you're defining it so narrowly it's impossible for you to lose the bet. I mean, even 9/11 wasn't "large enough to justify martial law being invoked". Your bets are no fun. I'd rather cheat you at poker. I'm only making the bet in keeping with the topic being discussed ie. "Continuity" and the justification of a 3rd term for Bush. Anything short of a major terrorist attack would lack enough rationalization. Of course, if you accept my parameters, I'd be happy to include you in the pool too. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest #23 April 3, 2006 Boy, it's amazing how fast an April Fool's Day gag can get out of hand. mh"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
narcimund 0 #24 April 3, 2006 QuoteBoy, it's amazing how fast an April Fool's Day gag can get out of hand. The problem with this one is it's too plausible. First Class Citizen Twice Over Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MrBounce 0 #25 April 3, 2006 QuoteQuoteBoy, it's amazing how fast an April Fool's Day gag can get out of hand. The problem with this one is it's too plausible. Not necessarily plausible, there's just enough knee-jerk reactions from both sides of the camp to keep it interesting! Gavin Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. If you don't take it out and use it, its going to rust. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
