Wednesday, April 21, 2004
A $700 Million Violation of Constitutional Law?
Many people seem to think so. David Sirota has a great piece up outlining the how's and the why's pertaining to what could be a serious violation of the Consititution. He breaks down the specific language in question and details how the White House has failed to explain the diversion of $700 million...
Since Bob Woodward disclosed that President Bush in July of 2002 diverted $700 million into Iraq invasion planning without informing Congress, the Bush Administration has failed to provide one shred of evidence to rebuff the charge. According to Woodward, Bush kept Congress "totally in the dark on this” leaving lawmakers with "no real knowledge or involvement."
Not only does the Constitution vest the power of the purse with Congress, but whichever of the two supplemental bills the President drew the money from had explicit language obligating him to inform key congressional leaders. Instead of opening an investigation, White House allies on Capitol Hill actually told USA Today that the move was acceptable because "the $700 million was small compared" with the overall spending bills.
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