Catching Criminals is Important Too Mr. President

Hello Papamoka Bloggers - It's only the first week, and I don't wish to be negative, but so far President Obama seems lukewarm on Bush crimes. It's early, but I'm still nervous. He signed impressive executive orders restoring transparency and ethics, and ordering Guantanamo Bay closed and ending torture, but going after Bush crimes and Justice Department priorities are still a mystery.

Republicans are still trying to cover their tracks. Many believe Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) is delaying the confirmation of Attorney General nominee Eric Holder by one week to delay him from going after Bush, Cheney et al on wiretapping. They may be trying to make a deal. Other Republicans are threatening to withdraw their support on the stimulus bill and other legislation if the Administration moves against Bush. So far there's a lot of smoke, but the fire is missing.

The biggest crime is about to expire, and Obama knows it. George Bush reauthorized the illegal wiretapping himself because Colmey stopped the hospitalized John Ashcroft from signing the paperwork. Remember, Colmey criticized Gonzales for trying to force him in front of that congressional committee. Well, that bit of lawbreaking is about to expire - the statute of limitations runs out in March. We need Obama and his Justice Department to act soon .

Whistleblowing on the day Obama took office has revealed the extent of the wiretapping. The NSA spied on all Americans, including journalists and politicians. George Bush probably benefited from knowledge learned through wiretaps. It's probably one reason why he always seemed to have inside information. His Administration, especially Rove and Cheney, were a little too good at exploiting weakness; it's obvious now they had an edge. If they did it, it represents a string of felonies and it should NOT BE IGNORED! Obama must act!

I find the whole justice debate mind-blowing. Evidence of Bush lawbreaking is extensive, yet the majority of Republicans still defend him. They impeached Bill Clinton over perjury, yet fail to criticize Bush over anything. They act as if he's above the law. They call anyone who questions him an "extremist." They always describe him as a "good guy" who "did his best" during very "difficult times." They describe him as a "decent man" who "tried to do the right thing" but fell short. It's extraordinary listening to them.

My Republican friends and family won't even question his past actions. They're almost "sheep-like" in their reverence for the man. They say "he kept us safe" as though nothing else matters. It's obvious to me now that objectivity, self-awareness and reflection are not strong Republican personality traits.

It's obvious there's a double-standard in the country today, but I can't figure out why. Is it party loyalty? It's very strange. We threw Nixon out of office, and he was a Republican, so why not question Bush? Do we need White House tapes? What do they need? Ordinary Americans appear almost brainwashed. They scream about Blago, and call for investigations and justice against Democrats on a regular basis, yet rarely question their own actions. It's amazing to watch.

Even journalists seem to ignore the severity of the Bush crimes. Dismissing FOX "News," correspondents on corporate news networks like CNN and MSNBC these days talk about how "difficult it would be to prosecute" and how "most in Washington are looking ahead." Except for a few like Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow, they talk as if enforcing the law [for politicians] is optional. I often walk away from the news dumbfounded that our nation has become so selective in the way it views justice.

So, ask yourself what will happen if nothing happens? I'll tell you! Average Americans will begin to question the fairness of justice, and start to see unequal justice. "Why care if they don't" will be asked everywhere? It will mean a slow and steady erosion of respect for the legal system. Is that wise? It may not be obvious right away, but it will begin to surface in courtrooms across America over time. Do you really want to take that risk Mr. President?

The Obama Administration may be playing political gamesmanship, knowing something we don't know. We can only hope they're doing the right thing, because inaction would be a disaster for the future of the nation. A majority of the country knows that Bush lawbreaking was extensive, and ignoring it would set a dangerous precedent for future presidents - both Republican and Democrat. American justice should be more important than political expediency. Catching criminals is important too Mr. President, so please act soon.

Michael Boh
Papamoka's Left Coast Contributor
from Our Rants & Raves Blog

McCain Rips RNC Over Attack on Obama

Video Link From ABC

I’ve never been a huge fan of John McCain but I do respect his “No Bull” attitude when it comes to government. I think that it is pretty much common knowledge that President Elect Obama was aware of the Governor of Illinois and his hard lined political philosophy and unaware of his depth of corruption. Some call it pay as you go and others just call it corruption. I find myself with the firm opinion that this is a problem for the people of Illinois to deal with and that should be the end of it. Police thy self Illinois and then let us all get back to the issues facing America and her people. John McCain has the same thought process and Politico has this on it…

McCain scolds GOP for whacking Obama
By MIKE ALLEN 12/14/08 10:05 AM EST

In a surprising rebuke to the warriors who fought for him through tough times, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Sunday sided with President-elect Barack Obama and scolded the Republican National Committee for fanning the Illinois corruption scandal.

On ABC’s “This Week,” host George Stephanopoulos asked: “The chairman of the Republican National Committee, Mike Duncan, has been highly critical of the way President- elect Obama has dealt with this.

"He's had a statement every single day, saying that the Obama team should reveal all contacts they've had with Governor [Rod] Blagojevich. He says that Obama's promise of transparency to the American people is now being tested. Do you agree with that?”

McCain replied: “I think that the Obama campaign should and will give all information necessary. You know, in all due respect to the Republican National Committee and anybody — right now, I think we should try to be working constructively together, not only on an issue such as this, but on the economy stimulus package, reforms that are necessary. And so, I don't know all the details of the relationship between President-elect Obama's campaign or his people and the governor of Illinois, but I have some confidence that all the information will come out. It always does, it seems to me.” - Politico

This whole incident with the Governor of Illinois is incredible news but it is fanning the fires that suspend progress on the greater issues in America. Why don’t we let the FBI and the State of Illinois take care of the corrupt Governor and let Obama and his team concentrate on laying the ground work to fix the RNC mantra mistakes under George W. Bush that has our nation facing the next depression.

Who the hell is the RNC to talk anyway? Were they not the ones that shelled out over $150,000 in clothes and cosmetics to Sarah Palin? Don’t they have enough problems dealing with rebuilding their own infrastructure rather than assuming that Governor Blagojevich is from Illinois, Barack Obama is from Illinois, they were both in state government so they both must be guilty. Isn’t that more or less similar in logic to blaming your local bank teller for the collapse of the entire banking industry?

John McCain knows how the RNC works, matter of fact he probably lost the election because of the RNC and how they work. John McCain is done being the best friend of the RNC and he is back to the old John McCain we all know and love. John McCain the fighter, the defender of the truth, and a man that knows bull when he sees it. Good for him. John McCain has always served best in the Senate when he was serving from his own gut. At least McCain wants to work with the President Elect to get America moving forward again. You can not say the same for the RNC or many of their other political leaders in government.

Papamoka