By Stephen Pizzo
The first thing we oldsters learned in school about our government was that it was comprised of three, co-equal branches; Executive, Legislative and Judicial.
Thanks to the GOP revolution, and in particular this current administration, future social studies books will have and easier time of explaining how Americans are governed. Because they've trimmed the three branches down to two branches, of which only one has any real power.
Yes boys and girls, the US Government has been remodeled, trimmed down, made more efficient. Now there's the Executive branch, which runs the show – the whole show. Then comes the Judiciary branch, which has been turned into a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Executive branch.
The Legislative branch has been reduced to a facade of democracy, a show, a dog and pony show -- often entertaining, but much sound and fury signifying nothing.
If you doubt this you haven't been paying attention.
Did you catch the Attorney General Gonzalez pretend hearings before the pretend Senate Intelligence Committee? Where pretend legislators vowed to get to the bottom of Executive branch spying on Americans, but refused to insist that the witness be put under oath?
And did you listen as the Attorney General of the United State of America responded to pointed questions from the pretend legislators with a curt, “I am not going to answer that.” To which the pretend legislators responded, “Okay,” and moved on to the next pretend question that would also go unanswered.
Or how about VP Dick's interview with Jim Lehrer? Jim asked the VP Dick if the Executive branch would be willing to entertain legislative changes to domestic spying laws, changes that could make what they are already doing legal. VP Dick, (summoning up the sneer he considers a smile, responded,) “We feel we already have all the authority we need.”
And indeed, they do. How so? Because they say they so. You got a problem with that?
And if you do have a problem with that, don't take it to court, at least not a federal court. Over the past five years the Executive Branch -- with the enthusiastic obedience of the Legislative branch -- has packed the federal judiciary with judges who share the view that the Executive branch should decide which rules should apply to them and which rules were simply too inconvient to be worthy of compliance.
It's hardly an accident that in five year Chief Executive George W. Bush has not vetoed a single piece of legislation. He didn't have to. The GOP-controlled House and Senate have become his Politburo. Remember those old black and white videos we used to see during the 1960s of sycophantic members of the Soviet Politburo mechanically raising their red voting cards in to pass Kremlin crafted laws? We don't have the same red cards, but we sure as hell have the same stuffed-shirt, pampered breed of lapdog legislators.
Here's a pop quiz: When was the last time either the House or Senate held real investigations into executive branch misbehavior? The kind of hearings where everyone is put under oath? Forget about it.
Thanks to the GOP revolution, and in particular this current administration, future social studies books will have and easier time of explaining how Americans are governed. Because they've trimmed the three branches down to two branches, of which only one has any real power.
Yes boys and girls, the US Government has been remodeled, trimmed down, made more efficient. Now there's the Executive branch, which runs the show – the whole show. Then comes the Judiciary branch, which has been turned into a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Executive branch.
The Legislative branch has been reduced to a facade of democracy, a show, a dog and pony show -- often entertaining, but much sound and fury signifying nothing.
If you doubt this you haven't been paying attention.
Did you catch the Attorney General Gonzalez pretend hearings before the pretend Senate Intelligence Committee? Where pretend legislators vowed to get to the bottom of Executive branch spying on Americans, but refused to insist that the witness be put under oath?
And did you listen as the Attorney General of the United State of America responded to pointed questions from the pretend legislators with a curt, “I am not going to answer that.” To which the pretend legislators responded, “Okay,” and moved on to the next pretend question that would also go unanswered.
Or how about VP Dick's interview with Jim Lehrer? Jim asked the VP Dick if the Executive branch would be willing to entertain legislative changes to domestic spying laws, changes that could make what they are already doing legal. VP Dick, (summoning up the sneer he considers a smile, responded,) “We feel we already have all the authority we need.”
And indeed, they do. How so? Because they say they so. You got a problem with that?
And if you do have a problem with that, don't take it to court, at least not a federal court. Over the past five years the Executive Branch -- with the enthusiastic obedience of the Legislative branch -- has packed the federal judiciary with judges who share the view that the Executive branch should decide which rules should apply to them and which rules were simply too inconvient to be worthy of compliance.
It's hardly an accident that in five year Chief Executive George W. Bush has not vetoed a single piece of legislation. He didn't have to. The GOP-controlled House and Senate have become his Politburo. Remember those old black and white videos we used to see during the 1960s of sycophantic members of the Soviet Politburo mechanically raising their red voting cards in to pass Kremlin crafted laws? We don't have the same red cards, but we sure as hell have the same stuffed-shirt, pampered breed of lapdog legislators.
Here's a pop quiz: When was the last time either the House or Senate held real investigations into executive branch misbehavior? The kind of hearings where everyone is put under oath? Forget about it.
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