We already know of the many ways the Bush Administration has tried to put the best face on failed policies in every part of W's domestic and foreign agenda. The pattern is a simple one: Bush policies fail and administration sycophants blame others. The war and the economy are the two must blatant examples.
But don't forget about Hurricane Katrina. A Veteran's Administration nurse wrote a letter to a paper in Albuquerque about the inadequate Katrina reaction and the Iraq war disaster, and the president sent the FBI after her, suggesting her letter "represents sedition." A letter complaining about Bush policies now is sedition? The New York Times points out that means her letter incited rebellion against the government? VA officials were only too happy to bully the nurse, Laura Berg, and bring the FBI into the case.
But what about the First Amendment? The president is trying to get rid of that, too. Can you imagine what our Bill of Rights would look like if Bush and Dick Cheney wrote them?
Berg finally escaped prosecution and now the PEN American Center is honoring her for standing up to power by using her freedom of expression. The Times says the PEN American Center is a literary organization committed to free expression.
Very good reporting by the New York Times. Sadly, not surprising behavior from this administration. Do not think that any of this will receive coverage over at Fox News, either. They need to use their time to uncover more about Reverend Wright.
His "thugs"?
Do all administrations have "thugs" or just Republican administrations?
Was Lanny Davis a thug? Paul Begala?
Just curious.
Outrageous! Since when has criticism of government actions and/or policies and/or performance become "sedition"? This appears to be another in a long line of actions by this administration to strengthen a new Imperial Presidency. The idea of separation of powers was abandoned long ago by Cheney and Co. and now free speech is the target. Quick - let's have the election tomorrow and a new president inaugurated by the weekend!
I agree that this is outrageous. Charges of sedition to squelch dissent are the sort of thing we expect in authoritarian regimes, not healthy democracies.
(And surely people like Mr. der Manouel can muster up some sort of reaction other than "Clintondidit!")
My guess is just the Republicans have thugs that they send after innocent people. God get over it already he is almost out of office. Move on to what the candidates are going to do to imporove everything in the US.
I wonder how many citizens would be for sedition against this administration? Many I suspect. Using the FBI to silence a VA nurse is hitting an all-time low, even for a Bush White House rife with low points.
It's a sad day for Fresnans when even a pathetic joke of a newspaper like the New York Times outshines the one we are stuck with by showing more journalistic integrity.
You should be ashamed of yourself Jim, as should be any commenters here who couldn't be bothered to actually read the Times' piece.
There was no reporting there -- it was just another Editorial Page opinion, which (as Jim is so quick to point out in other places) is not intended to be unbiased or even particularly factual.
Bush and any White House staff are mentioned nowhere in the editorial.
The FBI was called in by the nurse's own supervisors at the local hospital.
The VA investigator's letter noted that her writings, which included the call to "act forcefully to remove a government" (her words, not the investigator's) did "potentially represent sedition." Which it does, to any reader of plain English.
There are a number of limits on "free speech," and inciting rebellion against the lawfully elected government is one of them. Whether Mike or Dr. Provost like it or not.
One of the nurse's supervisors instructed her afterward not to represent her views as those of her employer, the Veterans Administration. I'm sure most (non-editorial page staff) employees at the Bee have received the same instructions from their bosses, as have any number of us. Wow, what a conspiracy!
It's amazing how the Bee's staff treat their own readers with such disrespect just for a chance to vent their own anti-Bush hysteria.
I've read the letter in question, and I honestly don't see how any reasonable person could interpret it as a direct incitement to rebellion. That's a major stretch, to put it lightly. Certainly not something that one would expect to trigger the use of a little-used law.
every month, 1000,( that's one thousand) Iraq "war" veterans attempt suicide, most of them are being "cared for" by the VA, not hysteria, not conspiracy, that's just a fact. And it looks "thugish" to me.