Defending an Imperial President

It is growing more difficult to defend President Bush. Not because his policies are becoming harder to stand up for, but because of the seemingly horrible atrocities that are adding up against the president. There is no doubt that the Commander in Chief has acted imperially during his tenure. In fact, setting aside that tenure and elections, you could almost call him "King George." Especially in his second term, Bush has used his own beliefs to push new policies onto the American people. I, however, defend these actions.

All 43 presidents have acted, in some degree, imperially - ruling in their own way to accomplish a personal goal. In 1798, Congress passed and President Adams signed the Alien and Sedition Acts which violated the First Amendment. His defense was that is protected the nation against uprisings, as predicted in France and England at the time. Similarly, the current president has interred suspected terrorists without due process, authorized spying on American citizens, and become nearly half as paranoid as Nixon. Both presidents had one thing in mind - national security.

From the little experience I've had with constitutional law (one class), I see no legal way to justify the secret wiretaps on U.S. citizens. But, constitutionally, the people do give the president the luxury of being above the law in some instances. As followers, we look for the leader to make the best decision for the security of the nation. Bush gave the NSA authority to wiretap citizens and noncitizens suspected of terrorist related funding or activity. So far, no one has been indicted for illegal nonterrorism related activity under his secret wiretaps. At least one man has been apprehended for visiting Afghan training camps and attempting to procure an escape airplane for al Qaeda. Who knows how many others have been apprehended and are being secretly held at one of the many secret prisons or interrogation centers?

Many may claim his tactics are radical and stinking of Orwellian Big Brother government. To that, I note the cost of security. Benjamin Franklin spoke that the the promise of security came with the deterioration of civil liberties. Benjamin Franklin did not live in the world threatened by nuclear and biological weapons that could be used to wipe out unprovoked tens of thousands of citizens.

It is now evident that thousands of citizens' library records, grocery store habits, phone calls, and perhaps even movements are being tracked. If you aren't doing anything wrong, you shouldn't have anything to worry about. I believe Bush has learned from the paranoia of Nixon and knows not to make an enemies list besides those of actual threat to the nation, not his reputation, as in the case of Nixon. Hopefully, the wiretaps and surveillance are temporary. Because, with temporary wiretaps are temporary threats. I see this new war on terror lasting as long as the cold war - hopefully ending as peacefully. When the threat of radicals exploiting a religion to destroy countless lives becomes an old threat, so should the wiretaps and surveillance. But for now, the threats exist, as should the minor violation of civil liberties.