The Gauntlet

George Bush has thrown down the gauntlet with his latest act of treachery, namely the use of the NSA to spy on American citizens. Regardless how many partisan hacks come to his defense claiming he has the right to do this because he is a war president, it does not change the fact that his actions are in direct violation of the FISA law. And though he is claiming legal and constitutional justification for his ongoing program of surveillance, he is most certainly aware that none exists.

This act, and his pathetic argument for its legality, is meant to exert an authority he is well aware he does not possess and to gauge public acceptance of limitless executive power. Bush’s administration has exceeded all previous presidents in exercising questionable authority and gaining acceptance of what was once unacceptable. Without the necessary checks and balances upon his powers he is unencumbered in expanding them beyond any previously conceived limits.

Congress, including bush’s partisans, apologists and water carriers, has been slapped in the face by this president who feels he is beyond their control. Those who have spoken out against him, as well as those who have spoken up for him, have been put on notice that he does not recognize their authority and is in defiance of the role of executive oversight. They must take positive action against the president now, or accept their new role as factotums with diminished capacity and heightened insignificance.

If Congress chooses the latter there will be no impediment for the president to overcome in claiming even greater authority including omnipotence. Considering the arrogance he has demonstrated thus far, it is no longer inconceivable that he would suspend elections and remain in office.