Fever Dream, by Chris Floyd

[The2ndWheel]

http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2006/01/27/120.html

WASHINGTON, April 17, 2006 -- Heralding a "bold new era of unity and reform" in Washington, President George W. Bush quelled a series of controversies over the limits of executive power today by signing a sweeping new measure, the Extending the Boundaries of Legality Act (EBOLA), in a gala ceremony at the White House.

The measure, passed overwhelmingly by Congress last week, acknowledges "the inherent authority of the commander in chief to take all necessary measures to preserve the security of the United States without fear of penalty or undue constraint by existing statutes, judicial rulings, foreign jurisdictions or international treaties." This immunized authority is to be exercised "at the discretion of the president" and can be "devolved upon any and all designated agents, public and private, of the executive." The act also relieves the president of the "onerous and inefficient bureaucratic requirement" of informing Congress of his actions.

EBOLA puts an end to a number of debates, investigations and court cases concerning such issues as warrantless wiretapping, domestic surveillance by the Pentagon, aggressive interrogation techniques, indefinite detention, "ghost prisoners," covert abduction, rendition of suspects to torture-practicing states, extrajudicial termination of "enemy combatants," no-bid contracts to politically connected firms, unmasking covert agents for partisan purposes and waging unprovoked war on the basis of manipulated and manufactured intelligence.