President Bush really does think he is above the law

A recent article in the Boston Globe should have any true conservative ready to rush to DC and demand the resignation of President Bush. He has taken a little known item a president does when he (or hopefully soon she) signs a new law called a signing statement and used it to basically declare himself above the law.

Remember the big battle to renew the so-called Patriot Act? The only way it finally got through Congress was by adding some oversight measures so Congress could make sure the laws were not being abused.

Bush signed the bill with fanfare at a White House ceremony March 9, calling it ''a piece of legislation that's vital to win the war on terror and to protect the American people." But after the reporters and guests had left, the White House quietly issued a ''signing statement," an official document in which a president lays out his interpretation of a new law.

In the statement, Bush said that he did not consider himself bound to tell Congress how the Patriot Act powers were being used and that, despite the law's requirements, he could withhold the information if he decided that disclosure would ''impair foreign relations, national security, the deliberative process of the executive, or the performance of the executive's constitutional duties."

He did the same thing with the law Congress passed to ensure we are not torturing prisoners no matter where we keep them. He signed it into law after months of trying to stop it from happening, smiled for the cameras, and then issued a signing statement that says he doesn't have to follow the law.

This new power grab using the signing statement should make conservatives go crazy. So where are they? If conservatives don't complain now, they have no righ to do so when a Democratic president uses the same powers. For the record, I don't want a Democrat to have this power either.

How crazy does Senator Feingold's censure resolution look now?

You can find the Boston Globe story here.