John Dean Challenges America: Fix This Broken Government

[babylonsister]

John Dean Challenges America: Fix This Broken Government
Submitted by BuzzFlash on Tue, 11/13/2007 - 5:28am. Interviews

A BUZZFLASH INTERVIEW

It's quite a stunning explanation of how they feel the presidency should run. For example, they think that when Reagan left office with very high approval ratings, it was like dying rich. They think the president should be down to single digits if he's doing things right, because he's such an authoritarian figure, he's not going to be terribly popular. Well, Bush looks like he's trying to fulfill that image for them.

-- John Dean, author, Broken Government: How Republican Rule Destroyed the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches

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BuzzFlash has been interviewing John Dean off and on for several years now. He's a prolific writer and legal commentator on issues relating to executive branch authority, lawbreaking, and the balance of powers.

In short, John provides incisive analysis on issues of grave concern to our democracy. His point of departure for his insights are the Constitution.

Dean -- unlike Antonin Scalia, for instance -- doesn't pay lip service to the original intent of the founding fathers. Rather, he takes the Constitution at its word, applying it to every American equally -- including Cheney and Bush.

That makes John Dean a refreshing voice of justice amidst a mainstream media that de facto proceeds as if the key members of the Bush Administration are above the law.

His Broken Government: How Republican Rule Destroyed the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches comes from a man of great analytical abilities and conscience.

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BuzzFlash: -- Broken Government: How Republican Rule Destroyed the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches is the latest in a series of books you have written about the recent history of the federal government. Lay out for us a bit how this book fits in.

John Dean: It's really the third in a trilogy about post-Watergate Washington. I've looked at what impact conservative rule has had. I open this book with a chapter on a topic that I thought really needs attention -- process.

"Process" is now considered a bad word by political consultants. After writing Worse than Watergate in 2004, which was about the secrecy of the Bush administration, I learned that the Kerry campaign did not use the subject of secrecy because they thought it was a "process" issue. It seemed almost standard policy of Democrats to avoid process issues, with the Congressional leadership telling candidates not to use process issues because they're wimpy. Well, the name of the game played in Washington is process.

Republicans are manipulating the process to their advantage.

more...

http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/interviews/084

[salin]

1. k & r