Letter: GOP is party of hypocrites

Monday, Sept. 9, 2002 | 8:36 a.m.

When will the American people wake up and denounce the Republicans for their hypocrisy? Republicans time and again claim that they support a strict interpretation of the Constitution.

Yet which party violated the separation of powers put forth in the Constitution by using the Supreme Court to select the president who would then have the power to nominate future Supreme Court justices? That's right, the Republicans. And which party declared that the president doesn't need congressional approval before declaring war when the Constitution clearly only gives Congress the power to declare war? Right again, the Republicans.

The silly argument that the 10-year-old Desert Storm declaration still gives Bush II the power to declare war on Iraq is just a ruse. If the Bush administration had hard evidence to support its war plans, it would have gone to Congress for a declaration months ago. The Bush people know they can't live up to the rules set forth in the Constitution, so they're grasping legal straws.

Every American who feels that the greatness and success of our country rests on the wisdom of our Constitution should be appalled and should tell the Republicans to respect this noble document.

SONDRA COSGROVE The writer is a local spokeswoman for MoveOn.org, a grassroots political organization that says Congress must fulfill its constitutional mandate to have a full and open debate on the Bush administration's plan for war on Iraq. Her views are her own and don't necessarily represent the organization.