There Is No Law But Bush Law

On March 1st, President Bush sealed a nuclear pact with India. The deal moves India forward as a nuclear power, including militarily. Along with an agreement by India to allow nuclear inspectors, it also allows U.S. arms sales - including nuclear technology - to India. I guess we will find out fairly soon if Bush strikes a similar deal with Pakistan, but at least for now, he has not. Such a move by Bush challenges the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

However, the NPT was already headed for history with the publication of the 2001 Quadrennial Defense Review. A violation that has been reiterated with every DOD strategy and planning document since (partial list, and detailed discussion at Project on Defense Alternatives).

Now the new generation of nuclear weapons has moved from drawing board to production and testing. Los Alamos labs has new consortium of contractors (including the University of California, Bechtel, and Washington Group International, and BWXT), under a twenty year no bid contract and a profit incentive for the work to be done. According to Greg Mello of the Los Alamos Study Group, the program at Los Alamos is:"absolutely" a violation of the NPT. He goes on to note that the Bush Administration programs undermine our global credibility in trying to control the nuclear programs of others - such as Iran and North Korea.

All this is made even more flagrant by the nuclear testing done jointly by the U.S. and Britain at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site last week (AP, 2/24/06). This was the first nuclear test in almost eight years according to the AP report.

The flaunting of international agreements has become common place with the Bush administration. It started with the determination that the Geneva Convention does not apply in the "war on terrorism" and a policy of torture of "enemy combatants." It continued with the preemptive invasion of Iraq on fabricated information. Now it continues with the flagrant disregard for the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Of course, Bush has shown no more regard for the sanctity of U.S. law. It started with refusing to release information and withholding archived documents from his father's administration, and magnified under the USA PATRIOT Act (just renewed by the Senate and on its way for a rubber stamp by the House). Most recently, has been his approval of sweeping spying on U.S. citizens by the National Security Agency. That "eavesdropping" likely involved tens of thousands of people. This "initiative" involved utilization of the defunded DARPA program called Total Information Awareness.

Bush, and his administration, have consistently argued that he has the power to do whatever he feels is necessary to defend the United States. Apparently he misunderstood the Presidential Oath of Office in which he swore to defend the Constitution: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

Bush has acted with the support of the Republican party in his dictatorial approach to the Presidency. All too many Democrats have gone along. Neither the President, nor the Congress, has the right to declare themselves a law unto themselves. We are not watching politics at work, but a coup.

Washington Group International Part of Team Selected to Manage Los Alamos National Laboratory

Los Alamos National Security, LLC Set to Launch Transition at Laboratory

2/08/06 Peter Neils, Los Alamos Study Group, Wrong investment: President Bush, supported by N.M.'s senators, pours money into dangerous and costly nuclear power and calls it an alternative energy source.

2/06/06 Greg Mello, Los Alamos Study Group, Sweeping Plan to Build New Warheads to Be Part of Bush Nuclear Budget; Los Alamos Is Pivotal Site

Posted by rowan at March 3, 2006 5:33 AM | [eMail this article!] |