Center for Online Investigative Research

Just a Pawn in their Game…
By, Frank A. Sicoli

New York, Oct 13 - George W. Bush said Wednesday, when asked about his nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, “People are interested in knowing why I picked Harriet Miers…Part of Harriet Miers’ life is her religion”. This was an unprecedented move considering that the president has alternated between remaining either silent or oblivious to the growing bipartisan controversy surrounding her nomination. Actually, things are beginning to look so bad for Harriet Miers that Republican senators are asking her to withdraw from the nomination, James C. Dobson is being nailed to a cross for a secret conversation with Karl Rove, and democrats are waiting to tear her apart, limb from limb, like a pack of rabid pit-bulls.

The president’s standoffishness in explaining why he nominated a person with no prior experience as a judge and the lack of information accessible in reference to the nominee’s standing on important issues such as abortion, stem-cell research, separation of church and state, and assisted suicide makes the case clear that he was more interested in passing on this post to someone that he knows will not oppose his agenda and will continue to carry the neo-con torch, rather than choosing the best person for the job. In this day and age, when it comes to information on judicial nominees, less is more.

Although, this shouldn’t be a surprise; after all, why should we expect anything more from a man who repeatedly drove past the mother of a fallen soldier and refused to offer her a response to what should have been an easily answered question? Why should we expect anything more from a man who continues to spend his life weaseling his way out of problems at other people’s expense? Why should we expect anything more from a man who preaches the humble words of Jesus Christ, hails him as his favorite philosopher, and yet at the same time is criminally negligent for the killing of thousands of people both young and old by way of militaristic policy and imperialistic agenda? Why should we expect anything more from a man who claims to uphold the great pillars of democracy and yet makes a mockery of free elections, expands the power of the military into our own neighborhoods, plans to petition presidential term limits, and considers the Fourth Amendment a threat to national security? Why should cronyism seem that odd when viewed against these other more harmful offenses? This man is a vicious bastard in more ways than one.

Please understand that Harriet Miers' so-called faith in “God” was of secondary importance in shaping his decision. I’m convinced the whole God bit is just a selling point and James Dobson was merely tricked by Karl Rove into taking on the role as salesman. In short, they overestimated the sellability of religion and its value as a commodity; ultimately taking for granted that her belief in God doesn’t necessarily determine her position on other important issues. Of course, the odds are that she’ll just follow the pack, but then again the president was quite confident when he called her a “trailblazer…”

First and foremost, she must agree with Bush on all fronts and not just the God issue. For instance, what if she believes in God but is pro-choice? What if she believes in God but feels strongly enough about the separation of church and state so as to agree on a motion to remove prayer from public schools? What if she disagrees with the notion of intelligent design in science curriculums? What if life is her religion but her religion is Muslim? (We know this is not the case, but you get the point.) Believers fall into each of these categories. Somewhere out there is a pro-choice, pro-science, believer in God. Just not in the White House.

This is why it’s more than just a case of cronyism. In effect, if this is only a case of cronyism it wouldn’t be all that bad. Cronyism is nothing new in Washington, in fact the White House is chock full of George the elder’s friends, George the president’s “former” drinking buddies, and anyone else associated with a member of the Bush family. Cronyism breeds incompetence. This is why incompetence is the order of the day. In fact, rumor has it that Jenna Bush’s boyfriend is next in line to head up FEMA and the First Lady’s nail-tech is soon to be nominated the Secretary of Agriculture. One doesn’t have to dig that deep to realize that the Bush family and cronyism go hand-in-hand. Keep in mind this is only one side of the story. On a darker level the president’s actions are much more nefarious than mere cronyism.

Why? Long after the 2008 elections are over, George Bush’s little yes-men (and women) will still be strategically positioned in these life long appointments as judges and other high-ranking officials. Bush can finally sit back at his ranch with Laura, enjoy a cold one, maybe even a blast (for old time sake) and look at his political empire from the outside and yet still be on the inside. George Bush will run the country vicariously through the people he appointed and put in these top positions. Mark my words; he will be president for much longer than the two term limit. In fact, I’m convinced he will ALWAYS be president of the United States in some form or another. How scary is that thought?

These are mafia tactics, plain and simple. The first thing the boss of a crime family does when he knows that the pigs are breathing down his neck and at any minute the Feds are going to break down his door and haul him away is to get all his yes-men in order from the top on down to the bottom. This way he can rule even when he is locked away in some godforsaken place like Oneida Correctional Facility. His men will continue to follow his policy and enforce his rules. Moreover, the incarcerated boss makes a point to still be able to earn even when he’s locked up.

However, what people don’t understand is that it’s not a matter of friendship it’s a matter of immortality. Everyone wants to live forever (well, maybe not everyone) and everyone wants to rule forever. Absolutely power rules absolutely and might I add absolute power rules for all time. You have no friends in the mafia, only followers; just as, you have no friends in the White House, only supporters. Friendship is too fragile, or perhaps too pure of a concept to support any criminal empire, no matter whether it’s la cosa nostra or the Bush administration.

Those people that think cronyism is the Real problem are misdirecting their concerns by worrying about getting wet while running in a lightning storm with a long metal rod in their hands. The real problem is not what happens today but what will happen tomorrow. We need to concern ourselves with the road that our current legislation is leading us down. What will tomorrow look like? What will 2008 look like? What will 2010 look like? The effects of the current administration whether it is in the form of energy policy or foreign policy will only begin to rise to the surface well after this diabolical maniac leaves office.

Come on folks, let’s face the facts, there will never be peace in the Middle East and it has nothing to do with deep-rooted religious or cultural differences, U.S. relations with Israel, or lack of democracy. The fabricated “war on terror”, just like the “war on drugs” was intentionally designed to be infinite in duration, in other words, never-ending.

The seed of hatred was planted as soon as the American military dropped the first round of bombs on Iraq. However, you can’t just put a seed in the ground and pray for rain. One must cultivate the soil. In order to cultivate the soil from which the seed of hatred is planted, the war-machine and the media spin machine aroused the primordial feelings of pathological racism that have gripped America for the better part of our history. That’s when 9/11 came into play. If you’re brown, smell like curry, sport a beard, and wear a turban, then you’re a terrorist. Like I said to a waitress at this diner that I frequent in the late hours when all others establishments are closed for the day, “If you want to find the real terrorists focus your attention on the White House. I have some bad news for you, George Bush and his cronies are the real terrorists.” As for the rest of us, We are all just pawns in their game.