House Passes Doomsday Plan

[cool_chick]

WASHINGTON - With no fanfare, the U.S. House has passed a controversial doomsday provision that would allow a handful of lawmakers to run Congress if a terrorist attack or major disaster killed or incapacitated large numbers of congressmen.

I think (the new rule) is terrible in a whole host of ways - first, I think it's unconstitutional,'' said Norm Ornstein, a counselor to the independent Continuity of Government Commission, a bipartisan panel created to study the issue. ``It's a very foolish thing to do, I believe, and the way in which it was done was more foolish.''

http://news.bostonherald.com/politics/view.bg?articleid=62564

I don't like this......

[david914]

Kinda makes me uneasy. Our government has managed to function fine for over 200 years as is, through many crisis'. No need for this kind of legislation unless perhaps you have ulterior motives...

[cool_chick]

Plus, it's highly constitutional.

[red-beard]

You don't need a congress for day to day business. That is the Presidents job.

[Superman]

Anybody fear a relationship between this thread and the "What is Government?" thread? I'm hoping to allow RedUFO to keep his position as the Board's official conspiracy fruitcake, but I'm not kidding when I say there is an anarchistic element to our congressional and legislative delegations. We're dropping bombs on Iraq when the worst enemy is having lunch near the Capital Building.

[350HP930]

Does this mean they are getting ready to send the opposition anthrax again?

[cowtown]

What's the alternative?

I guess first of all, we need a consensus: do we, or do we not, do contingency planning for the horrible things that could possibly happen.

If the answer to this is yes, then how can it be done better?

This is the same uncomfortable question we faced when the whole "Bush is going to delay/cancel the election" thing was going around.

It's easy to object, but not so easy to introduce better alternatives....

[cool_chick]

Well currently, governors can appoint congressmen. So there is a plan in place.

[350HP930]

There is also a legal way to modify the constitution, which this is clearly not.

These guys must have had their heads up their asses when they took an oath to uphold and protect the constitution.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

One HUGE problem with this is there is unlikely to be a court challenge to it that would (one would hope) allow its constitutional validity to be challenged in and overturned by the supreme court, until it's too late. Almost by definition a law has to be enacted before it can be challenged.

[red ufo]

Originally posted by Superman
Anybody fear a relationship between this thread and the "What is Government?" thread? I'm hoping to allow RedUFO to keep his position as the Board's official conspiracy fruitcake, but I'm not kidding when I say there is an anarchistic element to our congressional and legislative delegations. We're dropping bombs on Iraq when the worst enemy is having lunch near the Capital Building.

What you talking about Willis?

Everything I post comes from legit sources, most from our own media monopoly. And Alex Jones prison planet. The real crazies are the neocons who think you can bomb a country into democracy.

This doomsday stuff is nothing new. With our weather destroying our infrastructure and the end of the Mayan calendar approaching the end is just around the corner. So buy as many porsches as you can and drive the piss out of them before its all over with.

[VenezianBlau 87]

Is there a provision for the Doomsday Device?

"Mein Fuhrer...I can walk!"