Set It Right: Help us Restore our Nation's True Colors

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Set It Right

Help us restore our nation's true colors. Send a letter to the White House today.

It seems like every week brings a fresh report about a newly discovered abuse of power initiated during the Bush Adminstration.

This steady drip of deeply disquieting disclosures of official misconduct sends continuing shock waves through our country and weakens the fabric of democracy and our standing abroad.

To begin to correct the misdeeds of the past, we must first understand the extent of them.

Please join us in sending a message to the White House in support of an independent commission and a special prosecutor to investigate abuses of power, wherever they may lead.

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Message Recipients

Barack Obama (Democrat) - President

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Common Cause's sign-on letter appears below. Feel free to add your own words in the box underneath.

Subject:*

Dear (recipient name),

Common Cause and its 400,000 members and supporters are greatly concerned by continuing revelations of abuses of power initiated during the term of President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, including assertions that have appeared in news reports in recent days.  We urge you to reconsider your opposition to a full inquiry into abuses of power that allegedly took place, appoint a special prosecutor and support creation of an independent commission of inquiry. 

Last weekend's stories about CIA operations kept secret from Congress and surveillance programs beyond warrantless wiretapping raise questions as to whether illegal actions were taken in violation of the US Constitution and laws at the highest levels of government.  What's more, it seems like new abuses or violations of law are uncovered virtually on a weekly basis. Some of them continued unabated until disclosed and some continue on today.  Undoubtedly, there are more revelations to come.  This steady drip of deeply disquieting disclosures of official misconduct sends continuing shock waves through our country and weakens the fabric of democracy and our standing abroad.  

Our government must act boldly to reaffirm our nation's commitment to the rule of law.  Now is the time to ensure that the core values of American democracy that made us a beacon of hope in a troubled world – freedom from tyranny, respect for individual liberty and human rights, and government based on the rule of law – are vital and respected by timely actions not just words.  

The only way in which our country can regain its positive standing – in our own eyes and among those abroad – is to undertake a thorough and complete investigation into the abuses of power that appear to have occurred.  Only by understanding what actually transpired can Americans be assured that unconstitutional and unlawful abuses have been stopped and will not occur again.  An independent commission and a special prosecutor with a broad mandate would put an end to disclosures that do nothing to address the deficiencies that allowed misconduct to occur but fuel a never-ending negative news cycle.

We call on you to take this step.  Your oath of office demands no less.  You must signal your understanding that we can not shirk our national responsibilities to fully understand what took place and hold those accountable for any illegalities.  If you can not whole-heartedly embrace such an inquiry, then you should simply allow the branches of government which are designed for such inquiry – the Justice Department and the Congress, through creation of an independent commission – to investigate and, if appropriate, prosecute official abuses of power.

This is the greatest challenge to government accountability and the rule of law in our time.  We cannot fail this test and expect our system of government to flourish. 

To fully protect our constitutional system, any inquiry must be broad in scope, in order to answer all questions and foreclose a repeat of illegal and unconstitutional conduct.  Already, the list of areas to explore is long and getting longer.  The appropriate areas of inquiry that we already know of include:

* Warrantless spying on Americans.
* Misuse of the state secrets doctrine.
* Preventive detention and secret prisons.
* Use of torture and other interrogation abuses.
* Deliberate flaunting of Congress' oversight role.
* Politicization of the Justice Department.
* Abuse of executive privilege.
* Misuse of signing statements to override laws duly passed by Congress.

To stop the continuing series of revelations of misconduct once and for all, an independent commission of inquiry should be established and a special prosecutor appointed with a broad mandate to follow allegations of abuses of power wherever they may lead. 

We urge you to follow this path.

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