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Byrd U.S. Senate conscience Saturday September 21, 2002 LONG a student of the U.S. Constitution, Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D- W.Va., may be its most eloquent defender today. In his striving to prevent the Bush administration from seizing complete power, Byrd has become the foremost advocate of the checks-and- balances system between the three branches of government. In questioning White House efforts to impose an imperial foreign policy on the planet, Byrd does as much as anyone to protect the civil rights, jobs and lives of average Americans. West Virginians elected Byrd to Congress in 1952, to the Senate in 1958. His state, one of the nation�s poorest, saw a greater percentage of its sons die in Vietnam than any other. Now he questions Bush�s eagerness for war. �I recall all too well the nightmare of Vietnam. I recall too well the antiwar protests and demonstrations, the campus riots, and the tragic deaths at Kent State, as well as the resignation of a president. And I remember all too well the gruesome daily body counts in Vietnam,� Byrd told the Senate in June. Byrd praised Sens. Wayne Morse, D-Ore., and Ernst Gruening, D- Alaska � the only two who voted against the Tonkin Gulf Resolution in 1964 that expanded the war in Southeast Asia. The West Virginian said: �Morse expressed his concern that the Pentagon and the executive branch were perpetrating a �snow job� upon Congress and the American people. If the Senate approved the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, Senator Morse warned, the �senators who vote for it will live to regret it.�� Byrd himself was one of those senators. �For all of their blustering about how al-Qaida is determined to strike at our freedoms, this administration shows little appreciation for the constitutional doctrines and processes that have preserved those freedoms for more than two centuries,� Byrd said. In his two-volume history of the Senate, Byrd called it the �anchor of the Republic, the morning and evening star in the American constitutional constellation.� That�s a bit bombastic � but the senator is correct in contending that U.S. policies mustn�t be decreed by the president alone, but must be subject to approval by the people�s elected representatives in Congress. �As we learned all too well in Korea, Vietnam and Somalia, it is dangerous to present Congress and the American people with a fait accompli on important matters of foreign affairs,� he said. Warning of a �blank check for military operations that are yet to be determined,� Byrd insists that Americans should know what happens in the Philippines, in Colombia, in Afghanistan, in Iraq, in Palestine. Byrd also opposes threats to the jobs and rights of Americans at home. For example, he argues, the North American Free Trade Agreement hurt both companies and workers by eliminating hundreds of thousands of high-paying U.S. jobs in steel, agriculture, clothing and shoemaking. In May, Byrd urged senators to reject �fast-track authority� allowing the president �carte blanche to determine what will be contained in a series of trade agreements.� Byrd lost, 66 to 30. Byrd also opposes Bush�s threat to veto any Homeland Security bill guaranteeing �civil service protections, collective bargaining rights and other provisions that safeguard federal workers� rights.� The new department will employ 170,000. �I have not seen such executive arrogance and secrecy since the Nixon administration, and we all know what happened to that group,� Byrd said. Regarding Iraq, Byrd leaves no doubt he would like to see dictator Saddam Hussein gone. �He has promoted the starvation of Iraqi children so that he and his cabal can live in palaces. Saddam Hussein is a scourge on the people of Iraq and a menace to peace.� But, �as the Constitution demands, it is the role of Congress to declare war. When the president is ready to present his case to Congress, I am ready to listen. But I am tired of trying to connect dots in the dark,� Byrd said. Last week, Byrd told the Senate: �We stand today in the swirl of unanswered questions about this administration�s intent with regard to an unprovoked, pre- emptive attack against the sovereign nation of Iraq, the reasons for which have not yet been explained to Congress or the American people. Perhaps the White House has the answers to the questions that people are asking about why we may soon send our sons and daughters to fight, and perhaps die, in the sands of the Middle East. But thus far, we have encountered only a wall of secrecy at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue � a wall built on the pillars of executive privilege.� We�re proud that the West Virginia senator has become a champion of checks and balances in government. No president � especially one who lost the popular vote and was handed the office by his party�s Supreme Court justices � should rule alone, without other views. Crucial decisions must never be made solely in White House basement rooms. There are times when one man�s voice helps change history. Let�s hope this is one of those times. Robert C. Byrd is the conscience of the Senate. Write a letter to the editor. Return to Today's Editorials Search here for related stories � Copyright 2002 The Charleston Gazette <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! 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