Dick's dark view on presidential powers

Last week, PBS Frontline aired a special that is getting plenty of attention and discussion called Cheney's Law. Above is a pretty damning clip about the administration's use of Signing Statements, which is the Bush administration's method of sticking up its collective middle finger at Congress and the American people. Never before in my lifetime do I remember a president telling Congress that it will do what it wants. Even more damning is the press's willingness to under report this ominous, unchecked increase in presidential power.

It's no secret that the old guard Republicans, most notably Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld, were out to dramatically increase presidential power, even before 9-11. But, September 11 offered this administration the perfect opportunity (Read: Excuse) to do just that. Don and Dick were right in the middle of the Ford administration after the fall and resignation of President Nixon. After Watergate, the American public demanded, and Congress enacted, laws that reduced presidential powers.

This was inexcusable in the eyes of neocons Wolfowitz, Dick and Don. So far, the feckless Democratically controlled Congress and the press have done precious little about Bush's blatant, arrogant power grab, which has again created an imperial presidency of sorts.

Bush's use of signing statements alone, which openly flout laws that he has signed, should alone be an impeachable offense. (And there are many others.) If the Democratic party had any backbone whatsoever, which it has demonstrated on a daily basis it does not have, it would have put a stop to Bush's flagrant, lawbreaking presidency. Sigh.

All we can do is watch and wait. Only 457 days to go until we again have a legitimate president.

You can watch the entire PBS series, Cheney's Law, Here. I plan on watching it as soon as I can, and when I do I'll write my thoughts.

Partisanship set aside for Ford funeral, mostly

Washington, D.C. appropriately mourned President Ford, as we all did this week. It was a fitting send off for a man who helped heal a nation following the Nixon administration, an era marked by corruption, abuse of power, and much worse. Nixon's pardon aside (and I feel that received entirely too much play in the press this week), President Ford really accomplished what many believed unthinkable on August 9, 1974, when Ford took the oath of office at noon -- to restore Americans' collective belief in our Democracy, political system, and most importantly, the presidency. Well done, Mr. President. Rest in peace.

President Ford makes his final journey through Washington.

I thought President Ford's memorial service and funeral were both touching, appropriate and accurate tributes of the man that was Gerald R. Ford. With each of our presidents, there is always plenty of evidence of how they view themselves and how they want to be remembered, from their presidential libraries to their memoirs. But, there's no greater indication than their funerals and memorial services. As such, President Ford didn't disappoint this week; his planned memorials were great reflections of his character and personality -- unassuming and dignified, without a whiff of pomposity or self-importance; two unfortunate traits that tend to mark such events. No horse with the empty boots, no Air Force flyover (that was saved for the Michigan service). And the American public streamed in throughout the night to view his casket, alongside the many dignitaries, world leaders and former presidents.

Just when I thought this was about as nonpartisan political event as one can see, I read after the funeral service that President Bush was the only person who required that the Rotunda in the Capitol be cleared so he could go in and view the casket, where videotape shows he stood for about seven seconds. All presidents have egos, but really? What an uncouth rube.

This is one of my favorite pics from this week -- visitors passing by the presidents casket as he lies in state in the Capitol Rotunda on the Lincoln catafalque, which has held every president who has lied in state in the capitol since President Lincoln. I love the use of a drag shutter here (when a photographer uses a slow shutter speed). It's a cool technique that can add a lot to a situation, as long as it's not overdone.

The Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. is an impressive site to behold; it's too bad that most of the time that Americans see it is during occasions like these.

My favorite part is how they robbed Bush of his 1,000,000,000th photo opportunity - when it was time for pictures, the Ford children were nowhere to be found. Good for them.
President Bush's remarks (above) were pretty measured. I wonder if this was because it was revealed seemingly hours after Ford's death that the former president was vehemently opposed to Bush's disastrous foray into Iraq. We'll probably never know.

My favorite moment from the memorial service was former President George H.W. Bush's remarks, when he talked about Ford's ability to laugh at himself. Bush talked about the Saturday Night Live skits that made fun of his falling down, and Ford's ability to laugh at himself and the importance of having that trait in public life. And Bush Sr. also showed the ability to laugh at himself, doing an imitation of Dana Carvey doing an imitation of him (above). As his Bush Sr. said that, he got a big laugh, and the cameras went to the sitting president, and he had that smirk on his face that I've come to despise these past 7-8 years.

Anyway, it was a moving, memorable service, if for no other reason that even Americans who live 80-90 years only get to see these funerals seven or eight times in their lives.

President Ford is discharged

I read today the President Ford is at home and resting after a brief stay at Vail Valley Medical Center, in Colorado, which is good news. I've always had a special admiration for him for how he led the country after Nixon's resignation.

At first, my heart leapt a little when I saw the headline that Ford, 93, had been released from the hospital. I had flashbacks to my Nan earlier this summer; when they released her, it was because there was nothing more they could do, and they sent her home where she wanted to spend her final days.

But, with Ford, it looks like it was a false alarm, and that's good. He's been in better health, but it looks as if he may become our oldest living president of all time on November 12 of this year, passing Ronald Reagan.

Ford is on my mind because I'm reading a very good book about his presidency, 31 Days. If I ever finish it, I will write a review of it and give you my thoughts. I've been working on it for months - I've just been so busy with other stuff, I'm waay behind on my book reading this year. But, I'll catch up at some point. My early thought on the book is that it's outstanding - I recommend it highly.