An Arrogance of Power

In today’s Washington Post David Ingnatius attributes Bush and Cheney’s “arrogance of power” to a bunker mentatlity.

He writes:

Bush and Cheney are in the bunker. That's the only way I can make sense of their actions. They are steaming in a broth of daily intelligence reports that highlight the grim terrorist threats facing America. They have sworn blood oaths that they will defend the United States from its adversaries -- no matter what . They have blown past the usual rules and restraints into territory where few presidents have ventured -- a region where the president conducts warrantless wiretaps against Americans in violation of a federal statute, where he authorizes harsh interrogation methods that amount to torture.

When critics question the legality of the administration's actions, Bush and Cheney assert the commander in chief's power under Article II of the Constitution. When Congress passes a law forbidding torture, the White House appends a signing statement insisting that Article II -- the power of the commander in chief -- trumps everything else. When the administration's Republican friends suggest amending the wiretapping law to make its program legal, the administration refuses. Let's say it plainly: This is the arrogance of power, and it has gone too far in the Bush White House.

Yes, it’s an arrogance of power, but it’s not because of a “bunker mentality” it’s from the basic viewpoint that Cheney has had since Nixon’s days – that of a “all-powerful” chief executive. We are just seeing that theory come into fruition with basic contempt for checks and balances and the rule of law.

This was planned, it didn’t come about because of 9/11 or the failures in Iraq, Katrina, etc. etc. This is the basic viewpoint of government long held by Cheney going all the way back to his stint in the Nixon administration.

It has been made possible by the rise of the religious right, the development of a right-wing media (and intimidation of the mainstream media) and the cultivation of extremist views within the Republican Party.

Yes, it’s an arrogance of power, and that, I’m afraid, was the goal.