Mike Lofgren’s new book, The Deep State, describes the interlocking U.S. military-industrial complex, financial oligarchy and police state which is not subject to either the rule of law or democratic control. The particulars of his description are available in the previous two posts and in the linked articles.
Here’s what I think needs to be done in order to rein in the Deep State.
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Congress should exercise the power of the purse to prevent the President from committing acts of war on his or her own initiative. President Obama has stated that he considers himself free to attack foreign countries by means of bombing from the air, killer drones and Special Operations because these things are not war. It is only war when large numbers of American ground troops are involved.
Refusing to levy taxes is the historic method used by parliaments and national assemblies to force absolute monarchs to cease aggressive wars and submit to the rule of law. The U.S. precedent is the Case-Church Amendment of 1973 forced a cutoff of funds for military operations in Vietnam after August 15 of that year, and brought the Vietnam Conflict to an end.
Congress should pass a resolution ending funding for military operations and military aid and subsidies in the Middle East after a specific deadline, except for what is specifically authorized by Congress.
And if the executive refused to comply with that resolution? The Constitutional remedy for this is impeachment.
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Congress should pass a law allowing prosecuted whistle-blowers to be acquitted if they can show that the information they revealed was kept secret in order to cover up lawbreaking, incompetence or failure, to limit business competition, or to suppress information that is not related to national security.