The decider can become a dictator
The decider can become a dictator
By SANFORD LEVINSON • September 14, 2008
Taking note of Perez Musharraff's resignation as president of Pakistan, the New York Times editorialized that "the presidency must also be stripped of the special dictatorial powers that Mr. Musharraff seized for himself, including the power to suspend civil liberties and rule by decree." It is easy to agree, especially given some of Musharraf's excesses -- including firing judges he didn't like.
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One might substitute the Bush presidency. The most dramatic example is the basically unilateral decision by the president to suspend recognition of limits imposed by American and international law on methods of interrogation and detention of persons -- including U.S. citizens -- declared, often by sheer fiat, to be "the worst of the worst."
George W. Bush's description of himself as "the decider" reinforces the notion that we are electing what might be called a "constitutional dictator" empowered to make unilateral decisions on matters of peace and war, life and death.
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