No Secret Pardons for Bush!

I recieved this from a friend this morning and thought I should pass it on for you to read.

The link here won't work, but you can contact your Representative/Senator to tell them not to let these pardons be given. You can also check with the American Freedom Campaign website
at http://www.americanfreedomcampaign.org/ and this web address should work.
You also might want to check out this article about Mukasey. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/us/04justice.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&ref=us&adxnnlx=1228403046-2aQ/oCwoqU00FsD9UqrrGg

Secret Pardons

We may soon be seeing one of history's greatest examples of adding insult to injury.

For eight years, we have been forced to sit by helplessly as President George W. Bush and top members of his administration eviscerated the Constitution, broke federal laws, and defied the will of Congress.

Now, President Bush is poised to give each and every one of his accomplices -- from Dick Cheney to Karl Rove to Alberto Gonzales -- a full pardon, ensuring that they will never receive the punishments they deserve for their activities.

Worse, Bush may issue a preemptive "blanket" pardon, covering all officials within his administration without disclosing either the names of the officials involved or the crimes for which they are being absolved.

If this kind of secretive pardon seems wrong to you, please take a moment and send an email to your representatives in Congress immediately:

http://www.blogger.com/

The American Freedom Campaign strongly opposes the issuance of preemptive blanket pardons for administration officials who sanctioned torture, rendition, warrantless wiretapping and more. First of all, if these individuals believe they were acting within the law, they have nothing to fear. If they broke laws, then they should suffer the consequences.

In addition, we believe the American people deserve to know which members of the administration were involved in illegal behavior. Should Bush issue a blanket pardon to all administration officials, it will set a precedent under which future presidents may direct illegal behavior for four or eight years and then give all participants in the illegal conduct secretive free passes on his (or her) way out of office.

Congress can, however, stop this most objectionable action before it occurs. The American Freedom Campaign has proposed a Pardons Disclosure Act*, which would force the president to specifically name any political appointees for whom pardons are granted along with the crime or crimes for which they are being pardoned.

To tell your representatives in Congress to support a Pardons Disclosure Act, click on the following link:

http://www.blogger.com/

Once you have sent your message to Congress, please forward this email widely to friends and family. In the alternative, you can use the "Tell-A-Friend" option on the AFC Web site that will appear after you have sent your message.

Thank you so much for taking action.

Steve Fox
Campaign Director
American Freedom Campaign Action Fund

* The following language could be the heart of a Pardons Disclosure Act:

"Any pardon issued by the President under Article II, section 2, clause 1, of the Constitution of the United States, if granted to the President, the Vice-President or any political appointees in the President's own administration, shall specifically identify each individual to whom a pardon is being granted along with the crimes committed or acts taken in the course of his or her official duties for which that person is being pardoned."

A New Face for America?

The past eight years has seen the United States drop to the bottom of the list as far as many other countries are concerned – one more “gift” from the Bush-Cheney reign. But few have been as destructive as America’s refusal to join the world’s first permanent war crimes court at The Hague. That snub has become a symbol of U.S. contempt for the rule of law.

In one of his last acts as president, Roger Cohen writes in an Op-Ed piece for the NYT, Bill Clinton signed the founding treaty of the International Criminal Court, but the signature never led to U.S. ratification. On the contrary, President Bush withdrew the signature. Why doesn’t that surprise me? And that unbelievable “unsigning” was followed by an aggressive campaign to oblige countries to make a formal commitment, under threat of U.S. reprisals, never to surrender U.S. citizens to the court.

The effect of U.S. rejection of the court, combined with the trashing of habeas corpus at Guantanamo Bay, as been devastating. Allies from Canada to Germany that are court members have been dismayed by the U.S. dismissal of an institution they see doing evident good.

Other smaller nations from Latin America to Africa, browbeaten by the U.S. on the issue of the court, have looked elsewhere for lost military or financial support. The American idea, grounded in legal, has been undermined.

Obama recognizes and supports the I.C.C.’s efforts to investigate and prosecute those responsible for atrocities in Sudan. That is, according to Cohen, a good start and a good signal. To be sure, only by our aligning America again with international law can the damage inflicted on America’s image and appeal by the Bush administration be undone.

We have a long way to go to repair the damage done to our country’s world image by the Bush/Cheney regime, but this would be a start.

More Problems for the Wolves!

Thanks so much for your recent action to oppose the Bush/Cheney sneak attack on Greater Yellowstone and Northern Rockies Wolves. Already more than 51,000 caring people like you have spoken out! But this outrageous effort to eliminate vital protections for our wolves could result in the slaughter of as many as 1,000 wolves two-thirds of the region's population.If we're going to save these wolves, we'll need plenty of help. Please help us spread the word by forwarding the message below to at least 5 friends and encourage them to join your efforts to save our wolves.Working together, we can ensure a lasting future for our wolves.

With Gratitude,
Rodger Schlickeisen
Defenders of Wildlife