Alan R. Adaschik
Dept. of Homeland Security Power Grab
Sat Jan 17 09:06:40 2004
65.128.200.52

In an article that appeared in U.S. News & World Report on January 12, 2004, entitled "SUSHING HOMELAND, it was reported that the Department of Homeland Security has instructed its employees, at their discretion, to ignore court orders to disclose information.

A fundamental principal of the American experiment in democracy is a system of checks and balances whereby one department of government serves as a check and a balance upon the intemperate actions of other departments. Usurpation is a unilateral assumption of power by a department of government. It is a violation of Amendment X of our Constitution and is especially heinous because it also violates the principles of checks and balances that the Founding Fathers believed to be so important. If a department of government assumes a power, then the power so assumed, as a matter of course, is exercised unilaterally without oversight by other departments of government.

When Congress passed the Homeland Security Act, it did not authorize the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to break the law. Yet, incredibly, according to the subject article, the DHS has now instructed its employees to do just that. The authority and power to defy court orders was not provided for anywhere and therefore it is being assumed or usurped by the DHS. What this means is that the DHS is not only not accountable to the people of this nation, it is also not accountable anyone including our judicial system.

No war on terrorism, no matter how well intended justifies this nefarious power grab by the DHS. The fundamental principals that underlie our Constitution and way of life are now at stake. This despicable decision which undermines our inalienable rights must be reversed. There are two ways this can be accomplished. Offending officials of the department in question should be cited for being in contempt of court and jailed if they fail to comply and the official who directed employees of the DHS to break the law should be impeached. Surely, a department official who directs subordinates to break the law is guilty of an impeachable offense.

This nation is presently entering an election year. Therefore, there is ample opportunity for those who aspire to the presidency to raise this issue before the electorate. Any candidate worthy of the presidency should not shrink from his obligation to protect our rights, our freedom, and the fundamental principles that underpin our system of government. Hopefully, this year’s electoral process will raise this issue and make 2004 a watershed year for this Nation; one where our National government, once again, functioned as the Founders intended.