for terrorizing anyone who dares to oppose them. So obvious, it's the terrible image of the police state, the jackboots coming through your door, with you helpless to oppose them or call for help.
The Nazification of America continues.
Note too that there has been clearly been a policy decision to ignore FOIA requests that might reveal facts the Bush Administration wants to keep suppressed - this is rampant and it is largely unreported:
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1110AP_Sunshine_Week_Delays.htmlMonday, March 13, 2006 · Last updated 3:19 p.m. PT
Agencies missing FOIA deadlines, AP finds
By MARTHA MENDOZA
AP NATIONAL WRITER
(snip)
Paul McMasters, ombudsman of the nonpartisan First Amendment Center and one of the nation's leading authorities on freedom-of-information issues, said .... "There is absolutely no incentive for federal government employees to act with any sense of urgency on FOIA requests, and there are every sort of incentive to delay and delay. Those incentives are a culture of secrecy that has always existed in government, from 40 years ago when FOIA was passed to the present time."
(snip)
But Bush's directive stopped short of modifying a 2001 policy issued by then-Attorney General John Ashcroft requiring agencies to carefully consider national security, effective law enforcement and personal privacy before releasing information. Ashcroft cited security concerns in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks as the reason for the changes to open government laws.
"The Bush-Cheney Administration sent a powerful message government-wide with the Ashcroft FOIA policy in 2001," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., a leading FOIA reform advocate who has several bills pending in Congress to modify the law.
"That shifted the upper hand in FOIA requests from the public to federal agencies. The new policy says, in effect, 'When in doubt, don't disclose, and the Justice Department will support your denials in court.' It undermines FOIA's purpose, which is to facilitate the public's right to know the facts, not the government's ability to hide them," he said.
(snip)
Also relevant:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x638725thread title (3-12-06 GD):
NSA Bill would make it a crime to report President breaking the law AP, Editor & Publisher, and Glen Greenwald. Excerpt: “The Associated Press obtained a copy of the draft of the legislation, which could be introduced as soon as next week. The draft would add to the criminal penalties for anyone who "intentionally discloses information identifying or describing" the Bush administration's terrorist surveillance program or any other eavesdropping program conducted under a 1978 surveillance law. Under the boosted penalties, those found guilty could face fines of up to $1 million, 15 years in jail or both. Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies, said the measure is broader than any existing laws. She said, for example, the language does not specify that the information has to be harmful to national security or classified. ‘The bill would make it a crime to tell the American people that the president is breaking the law, and the bill could make it a crime for the newspapers to publish that fact," said Martin, a civil liberties advocate.’ ” "Secrecy, being an instrument of conspiracy, ought never to be the system of a regular government." --Jeremy Bentham, jurist and philosopher (1748-1832)K & R
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