What Is the Value of Bush's Word?

President George W. Bush swore an oath to uphold the Constitution. When it comes to trust, Bush's poll numbers are falling. No president is trusted by all the people all the time. But when does the breaking point come? William Rivers Pitt, in Truthout, says the strain is nearly at the breaking point:

The breaking strain has been reached, and those ideals we hold so dear are indeed in mortal peril. The President of the United States of America has declared himself fully and completely above the law. The Constitution does not matter to him, nor do the Amendments. Laws passed to safeguard the American people from intrusive governmental invasion have been cast aside and ignored, simply because George W. Bush finds it meet to do so.

Intolerable. Impeachable.

As has been widely reported, Mr. Bush authorized the National Security Agency to spy on American citizens. He activated this program in 2002, and has since reauthorized the program thirty times. No one knows for sure exactly who in this country has unwittingly endured investigation by the powerful and secretive NSA. Cindy Sheehan? Patrick Fitzgerald? Joseph Wilson? Non-violent protest organizations? You? Me? No one knows, but the unanswered questions shake the existence of our democracy to its bones.

Here's the crux. President Bush has repeatedly demonstrated that his word cannot be trusted. He runs the most secretive government of our history. The number of legal questions concerning the administration is growing. Without accountability by Congress, we cannot know with reasonable assurances what Bush is doing and whether it is in the long-term interests of our democracy. Whether it's impeachment or open and sincere investigations of Bush Administration activities and policies, the Congress must act. And the time is now.