Bush's Newest Executive Order

July 22, 2007

by JOE MILLER

On July 17 President Bush issued an Executive Order which some believe could be interpreted as providing the authority to confiscate the assets of any citizen or organization opposing US led actions and initiatives in Iraq. If such an interpretation is correct, or is perceived as correct, the order, entitled "Blocking Property of Certain Persons Who Threaten Stabilization Efforts in Iraq," will have the effect of abridging our First Amendment right to free speech. The order is also written in such a way as to be consistent with Bush's commander-in-chief "unitary executive" assertions about his ultimate absolute power in times of national emergency.

For the critiques of Michel Chossudovsky (1) and Marc Ash (2) on the implications of the Executive Order, and the text of the document, see the following links. For information on the background of Michel Chossudovsky, see the following link (3).

To place Bush's newest Executive Order into the ominous broader context created by his May 4 National and Homeland Security Presidential Directives, and to review the implications of Bush's assertion of what he perceives as his "unitary executive" powers, see the the following link (4). To review the implications of a provision slipped into a law passed last October that makes it easier for the President to declare martial law see the following link (5). The provisions received no publicity, hearings, or debate.

I'll have several posts with links to the thoughts of some very knowledgeable and insightful individuals about where this is all going in the next few weeks.

Joseph Miller
Department of Psychology
51 Madeleva
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, IN 46556

St. Joe Valley Greens, South Bend, IN

SJVGreens

Bush's Newest Executive Order