5 Years Later: The Shame of Bush and the Hope of Obama

It is a shame that George W. Bush will be able to serve his time to the end, because if any president deserved to be impeached, he is the one. 

At least in my mind, "high crimes and misdemeanors" will be his epitaph. 

"The President, Vice President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."
                                           (The United States Constitution, Article II, Section 4)

Wikipedia explains:
"'High' in the legal parlance of the 18th century means 'against the State'. A high crime is one which seeks the overthrow of the country, which gives aid or comfort to its enemies, or which injures the country to the profit of an individual or group. In democracies and similar societies it also includes crimes which attempt to alter the outcome of elections."

If the shoe fits...

He spoke today, but who cares? He has no right to speak. If there was a God, and this God was good, he would let George W. Bush roast a year a year in Hell for every person he has killed, maimed or deprived of his or her human rights. Think of what Dante could have done with a person half as evil as this man. But there is no Hell, which is why he really should have been impeached. But you can't always get what you want. 

The magic of Barack Obama is that he manages to convert our fury into somethin positive, that he turnes our anger into hope. That is the magic. That is the beauty of this young man.
Yesterday he spoke about race, and people listened. He spoke like nobody else has spoken, brave, human and full of hope. 

And now he spoke again, and for a moment we can forget about President Bush for a little while, and listen to a real man, a man with dignity and moral, a man of character, in sharp contrast to the man in charge who has none. 

This is how he ended today's speech in Fayetteville, NC:

"We are at a defining moment in our history.

We can choose the path of unending war and unilateral action, and sap our strength and standing. We can choose the path of disengagement, and cede our leadership. Or, we can meet fear and danger head-on with hope and strength; with common purpose as a united America; and with common cause with old allies and new partners.

What we've seen these last few years is what happens when the rigid ideology and dysfunctional politics of Washington is projected abroad. An ideology that does not fit the shape of the times cannot shape events in foreign countries. A politics that is based on fear and division does not allow us to call on the world to hope, and keeps us from coming together as one people, as one nation, to write the next great chapter in the American story.

We also know that there is another face of America that we have seen these last five years. From down the road at Fort Bragg, our soldiers have gone abroad with a greater sense of common purpose than their leaders in Washington. They have learned the lessons of the 21st century's wars. And they have shown a sense of service and selflessness that represents the very best of the American character.

This must be the election when we stand up and say that we will serve them as well as they have served us. This must be the election when America comes together behind a common purpose on behalf of our security and our values. That is what we do as Americans. It's how we founded a republic based on freedom, and faced down fascism. It's how we defended democracy through a Cold War, and shined a light of hope bright enough to be seen in the darkest corners of the world.

When America leads with principle and pragmatism, hope can triumph over fear. It is time, once again, for America to lead."

Hans Sandberg