Bush on the Constitution: 'It's just a goddamned piece of paper'

[Riesstiu IV]

http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/article_7779.shtml

Last month, Republican Congressional leaders filed into the Oval Office to meet with President George W. Bush and talk about renewing the controversial USA Patriot Act.

Several provisions of the act, passed in the shell shocked period immediately following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, caused enough anger that liberal groups like the American Civil Liberties Union had joined forces with prominent conservatives like Phyllis Schlafly and Bob Barr to oppose renewal.

GOP leaders told Bush that his hardcore push to renew the more onerous provisions of the act could further alienate conservatives still mad at the President from his botched attempt to nominate White House Counsel Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court.

“I don’t give a goddamn,” Bush retorted. “I’m the President and the Commander-in-Chief. Do it my way.”

“Mr. President,” one aide in the meeting said. “There is a valid case that the provisions in this law undermine the Constitution.”

“Stop throwing the Constitution in my face,” Bush screamed back. “It’s just a goddamned piece of paper!”

I’ve talked to three people present for the meeting that day and they all confirm that the President of the United States called the Constitution “a goddamned piece of paper.”

And, to the Bush Administration, the Constitution of the United States is little more than toilet paper stained from all the **** that this group of power-mad despots have dumped on the freedoms that “goddamned piece of paper” used to guarantee.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, while still White House counsel, wrote that the “Constitution is an outdated document.”

Put aside, for a moment, political affiliation or personal beliefs. It doesn’t matter if you are a Democrat, Republican or Independent. It doesn’t matter if you support the invasion or Iraq or not. Despite our differences, the Constitution has stood for two centuries as the defining document of our government, the final source to determine – in the end – if something is legal or right.

Every federal official – including the President – who takes an oath of office swears to “uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States."

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia says he cringes when someone calls the Constitution a “living document.”

“"Oh, how I hate the phrase we have—a 'living document,’” Scalia says. “We now have a Constitution that means whatever we want it to mean. The Constitution is not a living organism, for Pete's sake.”

As a judge, Scalia says, “I don't have to prove that the Constitution is perfect; I just have to prove that it's better than anything else.”

President Bush has proposed seven amendments to the Constitution over the last five years, including a controversial amendment to define marriage as a “union between a man and woman.” Members of Congress have proposed some 11,000 amendments over the last decade, ranging from repeal of the right to bear arms to a Constitutional ban on abortion.

Scalia says the danger of tinkering with the Constitution comes from a loss of rights.

“We can take away rights just as we can grant new ones,” Scalia warns. “Don't think that it's a one-way street.”

And don’t buy the White House hype that the USA Patriot Act is a necessary tool to fight terrorism. It is a dangerous law that infringes on the rights of every American citizen and, as one brave aide told President Bush, something that undermines the Constitution of the United States.

But why should Bush care? After all, the Constitution is just “a goddamned piece of paper.”

 

[willemvanoranje]

I don't know.. could he be that stupid?

 

[RoboPig]

the damning evidence that Bush is the fascist son of Hitler!

 

[MjM]

Well its not like we need the Constitution or any of it's ammendments. After all, Mr. President has decreed it is a "god-damned peice of paper"

Dubya!

 

[Chieftess]

The question should be, "Do you trust the source?".

 

[Huang]

This seems bogus. Though Bush isn't that smart, he would never, ever say something as charged as that.

 

[Riesstiu IV]

The question should be, "Do you trust the source?".

I got this in an e-mail link. I’m not too sure about the source (I’ve been rummaging through the website) but this is fairly recent news. If Bush really said this, it’ll probably be on news channels in a couple days. The name of the website is kind of suspicious but have there been any other reports that confirm or refute this?

 

[Speedo]

"Capitol Hill Blue"? Forigive if I'm just a bit skepical.

 

[Pontiuth Pilate]

It's a craptastic source. They make **** up. They're about at the level of Brit Hume and the Washington Times.

On the other hand, why argue over whether he SAID he thinks the Constitution is a worthless piece of paper, when nobody can reasonably deny that he BEHAVES like that's one of his core values?

 

[Bluemofia]

The question should be, "Do you trust the source?".

I was about to say that!

 

[Riesstiu IV]

Ah, crap I’m sorry I ever posted this. Looking at a few other articles, the source is completely ridiculous.

 

[RoboPig]

nnooooooooooooooo........the damning hitler evidence isnt true!

 

[Stylesjl]

Even if it were true, sometimes politicians just screw up and say something really stupid or god forbid- honest

BTW: The constitution is just a peice of paper, legally binding information on it though

 

[Pontiuth Pilate]

Like I said...

 

[bhsup]

It must be true, that's why I see it all over CNN, MSNBC, The BBC, Reuters...oh, wait, I don't see it there.

 

[Pontiuth Pilate]

Wait, haven't all those organizations been taken over by EVIL LIBRUL SOCIALISTS who hate Bush?

 

[bhsup]

Right. I didn't use FOXNews because the libs would just reply "Of course you wont' see it there!".

 

[Quasar1011]

Reading the quote, I was outraged that Bush seemed to think he has the right to rule by divine fiat. Hurricane Katrina should have taught him that he doesn't. But then I read this sentence:

President Bush has proposed seven amendments to the Constitution over the last five years, including a controversial amendment to define marriage as a “union between a man and woman.”

Immediately, my liberal bias alarm went off. Controversial to whom? The 90% of Americans who are not gay?

I'll believe this story when a credible news source reports it.

 

[RoboPig]

Immediately, my liberal bias alarm went off.

that's nothing my conservative bias alarm ha sbeen ringing since 9/11 and isnt broken.

 

[Pontiuth Pilate]

Reading the quote, I was outraged that Bush seemed to think he has the right to rule by divine fiat. Hurricane Katrina should have taught him that he doesn't.

Wait, Hurricane Katrina was God's divine sign to Bush to "lay off"?

Your official Kooky Credentials impress even this crazy liberal