Bush extends 9-11 “national emergency”

Bill Weinberg

A White House press release, Sept. 5:

Notice: Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Certain Terrorist Attacks

Consistent with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency I declared on September 14, 2001, in Proclamation 7463, with respect to the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center, New York, New York, the Pentagon, and aboard United Airlines flight 93, and the continuing and immediate threat of further attacks on the United States.

Because the terrorist threat continues, the national emergency declared on September 14, 2001, and the measures adopted to deal with that emergency must continue in effect beyond September 14, 2006. Therefore, I am continuing in effect for an additional year the national emergency I declared on September 14, 2001, with respect to the terrorist threat.

This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress.

GEORGE W. BUSH

THE WHITE HOUSE,

September 5, 2006.

See also WW4 REPORT #44.

See our last posts on politics of the GWOT.

  1. Bush loves Osama
    One needn’t resport to any conspiracy theories to note the continued usefulness of Osmama bin Laden to George W. Bush. From Newsday, Sept. 6 (emphasis added):

    Bush invokes bin Laden’s name

    WASHINGTON — Hoping once more to tap the political potency of 9/11, President George W. Bush repeatedly quoted Osama bin Laden yesterday to warn that the threat of terrorism lives on – and to try to rally voters behind the Republican vision for fighting it.

    Bush broke with a recent reluctance to even mention bin Laden by doing so no less than 17 times in a single speech – saying that leaving Iraq too soon would elevate bin Laden and fellow terrorists to the realm of past dictators like Adolf Hitler.

    “Bin Laden and his terrorist allies have made their intentions as clear as Lenin and Hitler before them. The question is: Will we listen? Will we pay attention to what these evil men say?” Bush asked.

    Bush’s speech came as the White House released a new counterterrorism strategy highlighting Bush administration efforts in the war on terror. But it also declared: “Since the Sept. 11 attacks, America is safer, but we are not yet safe.”

    It’s all part of a three-week campaign-style push – timed to Monday’s anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks – in which Bush is seeking to tap into past voter support for his anti-terror polices, support that has largely eroded over public dissatisfaction with the war in Iraq. National security has emerged as the key issue in elections this fall with Democrats seeking to dislodge Republican control of Congress.

    Democrats released a report of their own yesterday, cataloguing how they believe Bush has failed to keep the nation safe – including the inability to capture bin Laden since the 2001 attacks.

    “If President Bush had unleashed the American military to do the job at Tora Bora four years ago and killed Osama bin Laden, he wouldn’t have to quote this barbarian’s words today,” said Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Bush’s 2004 challenger…

    In the speech, Bush used newly released al-Qaida documents to highlight the group’s desire to bring lands stretching from Asia to Europe under the sway of Islamic extremists. He quoted bin Laden personally as saying, “Death is better than living on this Earth with the unbelievers among us.”

    For Bush, raising bin Laden so forcefully comes with some risks – not the least of which is to remind voters that even though Bush famously declared he wanted bin Laden “dead or alive,” the U.S. military has failed to capture or kill him.

    But David Heyman, a terrorism expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank, said Bush weathered that problem in the 2004 campaign and may now believe it’s worth the risk again “to put a real face on terrorism … I would guess there’s been some [internal Republican] polling that people get riled up when they hear bin Laden’s name.”

    And note that the supposed Democratic opposition like Kerry can only respond by baiting Bush as insufficiently bellicose.

  2. The case for impeachment
    From the “Impeach the President” page at the website of the National Lawyers Guild, Chicago Chaper:

    The Impeachable Offenses:

    I. Conspiracy to Defraud Congress & the American People:

    Lying to Congress & the American people about the reasons for the Iraq war; exceeding Presidential authority in violation of Article II of the Constitution and the War Powers Act

    A. Lying about the urgency of the threat from Iraq
    B. Lying about the Iraq-al Qaeda connection
    C. Lying about the status of Iraq’s nuclear program
    D. Lying about uranium from Niger
    E. Lying about aluminum tubes
    F. Lying about chemical & biological weapons
    G. Lying about unmanned aerial vehicles
    H. Lying about mobile weapons labs
    I. Conspiracy

    II. Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Negligence & Obstruction of Justice:

    A. Ignoring warnings about 9/11
    B. Obstructing investigations into 9/11
    C. Conspiracy

    III. Conspiracy to Violate the Rights of Citizens & Residents of the United States:

    A. Detaining without charge
    B. Denying the right to a fair, speedy, public trial
    C. Denying the right to habeas corpus
    D. Misusing the NSA to spy on citizens, violating the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution & the FISA
    E. Conspiracy

    IV. Conspiracy to Violate the Intelligence Identities Protection Act & the Espionage Act, and Conspiracy to Obstruct Justice:

    A. Allowing the disclosure of the name of Valerie Plame Wilson
    B. Lying to the American people about the President’s role in the disclosure
    C. Obstructing justice by lying about the President’s personal, direct knowledge of the leak
    D. Conspiracy

    V. Conspiracy to Violate International Laws that Carry the Full Force of U.S. Law Under the United States Constitution:

    A. International Law
    B. Nuremberg Tribunal Charter
    C. Geneva Conventions
    D. Torture
    E. Rendition
    F. Illegal Invasion of Iraq
    G. Conspiracy

    VI. Conspiracy to Abuse Power, Violate the U.S. Constitution, & Commit Criminal Negligence:

    A. Abuse of power – Separation of Powers – “Unitary Executive”
    B. Criminal negligence – Katrina
    C. Criminal negligence – Failure to protect U.S. military service members in combat zones
    D. More here – treaties, environment, etc.
    E. Corruption
    F. Conspiracy

    See also WW4 REPORT #s 89 & 68.