Here's a question: with what do you associate the number 359,443,925,683? No, it's not the estimated population of the United States by the end of 2008. Actually that number should have a dollar sign in front of it because it is the amount of interest we paid on our national debt during fiscal 2007.
That's right … $359,443,925,683.00 just so we can not pay down any of that $8.9 trillion (and exploding) owed by the citizens of the United States. That comes out to almost $30,000 for every child, woman and man! (Brillig National Debt Clock and US Treasury Department)
No, this isn't a swipe at today's economic conservatives who'll swear borrowing tons of money and then paying a huge carrying fee to never pay any of it down is great for the economy. That's a different discussion.
I'm still talking impeachment of Cheney and Bush.
The corruption and dishonesty part of our current federal administration already gets wide discussion. The lies that led to the invasion of Iraq, unconstitutional eavesdropping on American citizens, failure to respond to Congressional inquiries, signing statements, war profiteering, operating a government of by and for the corporations, waging an undeclared war against Iran, abrogation of international treaties such as the Geneva Conventions … all these and more demand impeachment.
What hasn't received a tremendous amount of coverage, however, is the breath taking incompetence of the Cheney/Bush administration.
At the time of Bush's coming to power in January, 2001 our national debt was about $5.7 trillion (US Treasury Department). Since then it has grown by $3.2 trillion … that's $246 billion every six months!
I don't care how many weak willed Democrats went along with the Cheney/Bush tax breaks for the wealthy, the driver behind those breaks was the administration. Cheney and Bush have deliberately engaged in a borrow and spend economic policy that has driven our nation further and further into debt, and don't forget this administration inherited an almost balanced budget. This is breathtaking incompetence at a minimum.
Don't forget two of the administrations more memorable summer vacations. The first was in 2001 when everybody in or connected to the intelligence community was running around with their “hair on fire” as former head counter-terrorism adviser to the White House Richard Clarke put it. What was it that Condi Rice at the 911 commission hearings told the nation was the title of a mid-summer presidential intelligence briefing? “I believe the title was bin Laden determined to attack the United States.”
Great time for a summer vacation, huh? A fine example of gross incompetence and criminal negligence.
Another great adventure for the Cheney/Bush administration was 2005. You remember that summer, don't you? We saw hurricane Katrina, destruction of a massive swath of Gulf coast line and the drowning of half of a major United States city! We were all watching a category 5 storm heading straight towards New Orleans, the administration was receiving warnings that the levees wouldn't hold and Bush ran off to campaign for legislation, attend a birthday party for John McCain and then more R&R. Of course Bush did find time to assure us his incompetent FEMA head Brown was doing a “heck of a job”.
And don't forget Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine/Israel, Lebanon and more … all human and foreign policy disasters at a minimum. Everywhere the Cheney/Bush administration has left their mark failure has followed.
This is just more reason to force an impeachment of Cheney and Bush. The incompetence of this current federal administration is a greater threat to us and our constitutional democratic republic than anyone, anywhere … foreign or domestic.
It's your choice: sit idly by listening through the walls while our nation continues to be raped by the most corrupt, dishonest and incompetent adminstration in our nation's history; or get active and force impeachment investigations.