Independence Day

Yes, today is the 4th of July, but I'm looking towards a different Independence Day:  January 20, 2009. It still seems impossibly far off.

I doubt that Congress will find the strength and courage to act before then to rid us of this Constitution-destroying administration, and even if they were to find that strength and courage, the impeachment process does not move quickly.

It seems almost laughable now to think that articles of impeachment were voted against President Clinton, who merely lied to cover up infidelity. The far more convoluted and important lies told by this administration, lies told to manipulate us into a pointless and disastrous war, seem likely to go unpunished. Lewis Libby, prosecuted by a Bush-appointed US Attorney named special prosecutor by a Bush-appointed DOJ official, was found guilty by a jury and sentenced by a Bush-appointed judge of perjury, of lying to prevent that special prosecutor from finding how deeply the lies went. Rather than chance that Libby might be unwilling to stick with his lies as he faced certain imprisonment, President Bush commuted his sentence, so that Libby no longer faced prison. By commuting the sentence, rather than pardoning him, Bush ensured that Libby could continue to pursue his appeal of his conviction and maintain his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination.

This administration, who never saw a civil right it wasn't willing to abrogate in the name of power, and this President, who never saw a prison sentence that was "excessive" for anybody else, suddenly saw a need for that Bill of Rights, to protect their friend and to protect themselves. For is there any doubt left that Bush and Cheney lied to us, and that Libby would have been able to bring to light the extent of their lying?

Richard Nixon resigned over his lying, but for all his love of power, he evidently did have limits as to what he would do to pursue power, or perhaps Republican senators in 1974 had limits as to what they would go along with. Neither Bush nor Cheney seem to have any limits in what they will do to achieve power, and very few Republican Senators have shown that they will actually take action against this President. So, I expect neither resignation nor impeachment to deliver us from this tyranny.

I wait for liberty delivered by the 22nd Amendment, and a new Independence Day.