Friday, May 18, 2007

"Those who would give up essential Liberty to purchase a little temporary Safety deserve neither Liberty nor Safety"

I didn't get to my Law School Reunion, but I want to add my support to my classmates' An Open Letter To Alberto Gonzales in today's Washington Post.

"As lawyers, and as a matter of principle, we can no longer be silent about this Administration’s consistent disdain for the liberties we hold dear. Your failure to stand for the rule of law, particularly when faced with a President who makes the aggrandized claim of being a unitary executive, takes this country down
a dangerous path."

"Your country and your President are in dire need of an attorney who will do the tough job of providing independent counsel, especially when the advice runs counter to political expediency. Now more than ever, our country needs a President, and an Attorney General, who remember the apt observation attributed to Benjamin Franklin:

"Those who would give up essential Liberty to purchase a little temporary
Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”

We call on you and the President to relent from this reckless path,and begin to restore respect for the rule of law we all learned to love many years ago."