I was proposed the question a few days ago – “What laws has George W. Bush actually broken?”
The questioner was pissed. He had already been arguing with another liberal for 30 minutes, so I didn’t get the benefit of a warm-up. I hadn’t even started my engine, but he’d already been green flag racin’ for a while.
And I didn’t even respond. It was a cookout celebrating Independence Day, and I didn’t want to argue. I was feeling patriotic, actually, and didn’t feel like tearing down the President while I was basking in the glory of our nation’s birthday.
But if I had responded, I would’ve have clarified the question. “Do you mean IMMORAL or ILLEGAL?”
Because if you mean illegal, I’d say that warrantless wiretapping, outing a CIA agent in wartime, signing statements, waterboarding, and the US attorney firings are all against the law.
However, if you mean merely IMMORAL, well, we can talk about Terri Schiavo, Abu Ghraib, Hurricane Katrina, “Mission Accomplished”, Scooter’s pardon, the fudging of intel to invade Iraq, record oil prices, record budget deficits, record trade deficits, record number of citizens without health insurance, and two recessions.
Plus Dick Cheney shot a man in the face. Which may not be immoral since it was an accident, but it’s still a pretty screwed up thing to do.
Next Independence Day, I’ll bring my A-game. This year, I didn’t have it in me.
When your maiden country is ill, it is best to celebrate her birthday and nurse her back to health. This year I came to praise my country, not scold her.
