Which '08 Candidate Will Restore Our Constitution?

[doh_phooey]

Will the next president -- especially a Democratic president -- disavow Bush's unitary executive (Commander-in-Chief unaccountable to Congress, etc) and restore the Constitution?

THE PLEDGE:

As a candidate for president of the United States, I pledge once elected to disavow the extra-Constitutional powers of the so-called "unitary" executive; to protect and defend the Constitution and uphold the rule of law. I also pledge to lead the legislative effort to restore the Constitution so that there will once again be a fully intact set of rights and liberties available to all people living in America and held under U.S. jurisdiction as existed prior to January 2001. I pledge to bring the presidency back into balance with the other two branches, while exercising the Constitutional rights and duties afforded the president by the Constitution.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/4/15/103251/955

[snappyturtle]

1. I find this long candidancy season almost too much to listen to.

However, I can't enitrely escape it and am yet to hear any candidate speak about honoring and upholding the Constitution especially in light of the present administration's desecration of it.

I haven't heard any candidate say he/she would give up the powers that * has gathered for the executive branch.

I haven't heard of any candidate say he/she would restore the Constitution.

I hope I'm wrong.

[bryant69]

2. Kucinich might say it.

I don't know - have you visited their home pages - you might get more information there.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[snappyturtle]

3. I agree he "could" but..............and no, I haven't visited the

link above. Time to write Al Gore...again.

[doh_phooey]

4. So far I've found this

Kucinich

On the topic of civil rights and civil liberties, Kucinich brought the crowd to its feet when he said "it's time to restore our constitution, it's time to repeal the Patriot Act, and it's time to impeach the Vice President of the United States."

http://campaignsandelections.com/nh/releases/?id=902

[doh_phooey]

9. only 2 candidates attended

The day featured a rally in Upper Senate Park with thousands of ACLU members and supporters and speeches by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Tom Harkin (D-IA), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), and our very own Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), the primary sponsor of both bills the NYCLU is supporting.

http://www.nyclu.org/restorehabeas/

[Neecy]

5. so far...

The only candidate (to my knowledge) who has made restoring our Constitutional rights a major focus of his campaign has been Chris Dodd. I hope this focus spreads throughout the rest of the candidates, because Dodd is polling in the single digits.

[doh_phooey]

6. Dodd

Indeed, one of the saddest days in my 26-year career in the Senate occurred last fall when the Congress passed the Military Commissions Act (MCA), allowing evidence obtained through torture to be admitted into evidence, denying individuals the right to counsel, the right to invoke the Geneva Conventions. Indeed, with passage of the MCA, Congress removed the single most important and effective safeguard of liberty man has known:

The right of habeas corpus, permitting prisoners to be brought before court to determine whether their detainment is lawful.

In removing habeas corpus protections, the MCA affirmed vengeance as a tool in fighting terrorism - discarding sixty years of precedent and respect for the rule of law.

America can lead again, but we must restore our moral authority. That is why I introduced the Restoring the Constitution Act (RCA).

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-dodd/restoring-americas-stand_b_51114.html

[vireo]

7. I see that Obama recently signed on as co-sponsor

COSPONSORS(13), ALPHABETICAL : (Sort: by date)
Sen Bingaman, Jeff - 3/28/2007 Sen Boxer, Barbara - 2/28/2007
Sen Brown, Sherrod - 4/10/2007 Sen Feingold, Russell D. - 2/13/2007
Sen Harkin, Tom - 3/26/2007 Sen Kennedy, Edward M. - 2/26/2007
Sen Lautenberg, Frank R. - 2/26/2007 Sen Leahy, Patrick J. - 2/13/2007
Sen Menendez, Robert - 2/13/2007 Sen Mikulski, Barbara A. - 3/1/2007
Sen Obama, Barack - 8/3/2007 Sen Sanders, Bernard - 3/26/2007
Sen Wyden, Ron - 6/14/2007

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:SN00576:@@@P

[doh_phooey]

8. All the GOP candidates have promised to restore the Constitution

... back to the pre-Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments era

[Buck Rabbit]

12. heh, good post ... n/t

[doh_phooey]

14. thanx

:)

[KAT119]

10. Kucinich would turn all the * abuses around, and also create a Dept.

of Peace....Kucinich is a true SUPERMAN under his Kentian disguise....

[doh_phooey]

11. Kucinich, Dodd, Obama

That's only three.

Still waiting to here from Hillary, Biden, Richardson, et al

[Buck Rabbit]

13. Congress and the Supreme Court.

With any Democratic President, expect the Republican appointed Supreme Court to become fundamentalists once again in rolling back executive power.

Then it will be up to Congress to take back the powers they have ceded to the executive branch.

If we get another GOP resident, without a real majority in congress, the old boss will be the same as the new boss.

[doh_phooey]

15. Re: congress

Need to expand the majority in both houses.

[Buck Rabbit]

16. A real majority.

For example in the Senate we are the majority in name only, having the minority in available votes to cast.

There are 49 voting Democrats with Johnson being medically out counting Sanders as a Democrat. Because Johnson and Lieberman count in determining Majority with respect to Senate rules we had a technical majority, but in actual votes it is 49 to 49 with Lieberman being the tie breaker and always siding with the pubs on all non-domestic issues.

To reign in the power of the executive branch with a Republican President in 2008 we would need veto override majorities in both houses. That is possible in the House but would be really tough in the Senate. But the election of any Democrat as President would see the Supreme Court plus the constitutional fundamentalists in both parties in Congress pushing back the power of the executive branch.

[doh_phooey]

17. The Senate would be made easier

if Joe would go and Vitter would resign. (If anyone remembers Vitter ... time to return to that story.)

[doh_phooey]

18. The Blogs Are Alive With the Sound of Angry Democrats

By CARL HULSE
Published: August 9, 2007

WASHINGTON, Aug. 8 — Progressive and liberal groups and left-leaning blogs are furious, tossing around fighting words like “spineless,” “craven” and “weak.”

“Democratic leaders in Congress didn’t put up much of a fight and they didn’t stand up and say ‘no’ to Bush,” said an e-mail message that political operatives for the group MoveOn sent Tuesday to the organization’s members, urging them to sign an online petition calling on Congress to reverse the new law.

The A.C.L.U. wants to make sure that Congress and the country have all the information they need for the renewed debate. On Wednesday, the group filed an unusual request with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which operates in near-total secrecy, asking it to make public its recent opinions on the scope of the government’s ability to wiretap Americans.

The executive director of the A.C.L.U., Anthony D. Romero, said, “Unless the FISA court discloses the documents leading up to the recent law and shedding light on the government’s claimed surveillance authority, an informed and meaningful debate — the cornerstone of our democracy — cannot occur.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/washington/09dems.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

[doh_phooey]

19. How We Can Take the Constitution Back From the Brink

By Tara Lohan, AlterNet. Posted August 9, 2007.

A new organization is leading the fight to stop Bush from trampling on our Constitution and our rights. Find out how to join them.

The American Freedom Campaign has stepped up to the plate and is working to build bipartisan grassroots support "to reverse the abuse of executive power and restore our system of checks and balances."

The group was spearheaded by Wes Boyd, the founder of MoveOn.org; David Fenton, the executive director of Fenton Communications; William Haseltine, a scientist and social entrepreneur; and Naomi Wolf, author of The End of America: A Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot.

They've been joined in their efforts by the Center for Constitutional Rights, Human Rights Watch, MoveOn.org, and other partner organizations.

http://www.alternet.org/rights/59112/

[ThomWV]

20. Go find a copy of Al Gore's Speech At Constitution Hall

It was about a year ago that Al Gore made a speech on the matter at Constitution Hall at the invitation of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), maybe a little bit longer. C-Span should have it in their archives. It left no doubt that he is the defender of the Constitution we need now. Also read his book, "The Assault On Reason". That should tell you who you can trust to set us straight.