-Message copied in full without modification (except for addressee's name).Senator Edward M. Kennedy wrote:Dear _______,
Right now, the Vice President of the United States is
breaking the law.
Since 2003, Vice President Cheney has refused to comply with
Executive Order 12958, which "prescribes a uniform system
for classifying, safeguarding, and declassifying national
security information."
The Vice President claims he's exempt from presidential
executive orders because, as President of the Senate, he is
"attached" to the legislative branch. But the Senate has
even more stringent regulations on the handling of
classified material -- even more rules that the Vice
President hasn't followed. In typical fashion, the White
House will only say that this is an "interesting
constitutional question that people can debate."
Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution clearly
states:
"The executive power shall be vested in a President of the
United States of America. He shall hold his office during
the term of four years, and, together with the Vice
President, chosen for the same term, be elected ..."
It's time to remind the Vice President that he can't ignore
our nation's laws. We're putting together a special copy of
the U.S. Constitution just for him -- one that has the 39
original signatures along with all of ours. Add your name
today and send a message to Dick Cheney:
http://www.democraticmajority.com/cheney
The Bush Administration refuses to hold itself accountable
for the protection of our national security, and Vice
President Cheney is a key part of the problem. It was his
office that leaked the identity of a CIA agent to the media.
He's part of an Administration under investigation for using
email accounts of the Republican National Committee to
conduct official government business. According to the
Washington Post:
"Across the board, the vice president's office goes to
unusual lengths to avoid transparency. Cheney declines to
disclose the names or even the size of his staff, generally
releases no public calendar and ordered the Secret Service
to destroy his visitor logs.
"...In the usual business of interagency consultation,
proposals and information flow into the vice president's
office from around the government, but high-ranking White
House officials said in interviews that almost nothing flows
out. Close aides to Cheney describe a similar one-way valve
inside the office, with information flowing up to the vice
president but little or no reaction flowing down."
Executive Order 12958 states that information must be
properly maintained "to protect our citizens, our democratic
institutions, and our participation within the community of
nations." President Bush amended and endorsed this order,
and Vice President Cheney's office complied with it until
2003. Effective oversight and transparency of our country's
most important documents are essential to accountability and
respect for the rule of law.
Under Dick Cheney's watch, some of our country's most
disgraceful moments have happened -- from Guantanamo Bay to
Abu Ghraib. Because of him, the Bush administration started
in secrecy, marched to war in secrecy and will end in
secrecy, all with great damage to our Constitution, to our
government and to the American people.
Tell Vice President Cheney he's not above the Constitution.
He can't rewrite the Constitution to suit himself.
http://www.democraticmajority.com/cheney
Sincerely,
Senator Edward M. Kennedy
-I find it amazing that this sort of pussy footing is even considered by the surrendercrats. Do they think the blatant and extensive illegal action by the republicans like Cheney will simply go away with some dumb letter? The surrendercrats make the WW2 era French government look audacious and indomitable by comparison. So much for the rule of law, not that I thought it ever really existed in the first place, but this is just ridiculous. Frankly, republicans in the US gov. appear to be about as accountable to the law as Putin or the Chinese communist party.
