American Politics Journal

A Rush to Judgment
Limbaugh as good a columnist as he was a radio announcer
by Bryan Zepp Jamieson

Dec. 1, 2001 -- MT. SHASTA, CA (APJP) -- Rush Limbaugh, apparently intent on salvaging that quarter-of-a-billion-dollar contract he penned last year while in the middle stages of his hearing problem, has taken up writing a column.

For us liberals, this is a good thing -- because instead of having to listen to three hours of repetitious and inane babble on the radio, all we have to do is take his latest column, circle the more idiotic remarks, and pass it around to the rest of the office.

Bet he doesn't last.

Limbaugh had a column in the November 30th issue of the Sacramento Bee that the Bee titled, "Bush team isn't doing anything FDR didn't do."

In it, Rush excuses Putsch's efforts to erect a military tribunal by pointing out, correctly, that FDR ordered the incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans, and describes this as an "outrage" -- again, correctly.

In fact, it's more than an outrage. It was the most cowardly, craven, despicable, amoral and unconstitutional thing FDR did during his 12 years in office. And contrary to what Rush implies in his column, a large majority of liberals would agree with that. House Resolution 1776 (even Rush, if pressed, might admit that FDR didn't act alone) was one of the most shameful moments in American history.

Rush strongly supports Putsch's efforts to try aliens by military tribunals. He considers it a shining and defining moment for Putsch -- in other words, he takes the very worst element of FDR's Presidency, and compares it with what he considers the best of Putsch's, and because both acts are disgraceful and unconstitutional, decides that the two presidencies are equivalent!

Mind you, this is the same Limbaugh who inveighs mightily against "situational ethics."

Limbaugh is perplexed as to how the military tribunals violate the Bill of Rights, which Limbaugh apparently thinks applies only to citizens.

The Fourth Amendment, covering search and seizure, refers to the right of the people. Not the 'American people.' The People. Just 'the people' residing in the United States. Anyone. Everyone.

The Fifth Amendment, regarding trial and punishment, starts out, 'No person shall...' Not 'No American shall...' No Person Shall. Anyone. Everyone.

The Sixth Amendment begins, 'The accused shall enjoy...', not 'The accused citizen shall enjoy...'. The Accused Shall Enjoy. Anyone. Everyone. The right to a trial by jury is likewise universal anywhere within the jurisdiction of the Constitution. Anyone. Everyone.

In a bizarre turn, Limbaugh then assigns FDR the blame for a bizarre 1942 Supreme Court decision (pretending that the generally adversarial relationship between FDR and the Court did not exist) which he does not name, but which I assume to be Ex Parte Quirin, a truly odd decision that permitted the military to try German saboteurs who came on our shores in 1942 in order to wreak destruction.

What is odd about this decision is that the court had previously addressed this manner, in another Ex Parte decision in 1866, when it maintained that enemy nationals could not be tried in military court if civilian courts were available. Civilian courts were available in 1942. There were quite a few of them.

Ex Parte Quirin led to the conviction of the would-be saboteurs, and the hanging of six of them. We'll never know if they were actually guilty or not. The capricious nature of such kangaroo tribunals is revealed by the fact that the man who arrived with the saboteurs was in fact an American, apparently loyal to America, and had gone to the FBI to convince them that enemy agents had arrived. He had to go twice because they didn't believe him at first, and he had to come back with proof. He, too, was convicted -- without cross-examination or anything resembling a defense and in secret. He died in jail a few years later. J. Edger Hoover was given the Medal of Honor for the incident.

One element that Rush left unstated in Ex Parte Quirin was that it specified that only foreign nationals invading our shore from countries with whom we were at war could be covered. Oddly enough, the type of terrorists that Putsch pretends we're at war with hail from Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Neither is on our list of 'terrorist nations' and they aren't going to be any time soon. So if Ex Parte Quirin had any validity in its own right, it doesn't apply in this case.

Did FDR approve of Ex Parte Quirin? History doesn't say, but Rush strenuously hopes that the reader will assume that he did, and that FDR's lapses will justify Putsch's actions now. It's truly amazing how right wingers have to strive mightily to reach up to attain parity with a long-dead Democrat at his worst moment.

Rush goes on to finish with an amazing series of conjectures, including the assertion that it would be too risky for civilian courts to try terrorists (although they have done so in the past, including during the dangerous post bellum era, and today, mob trials occur frequently) and that there aren't enough judges. He blames the Democrats for this, pointing out that only a quarter of the judicial vacancies have been filled by this Senate since Putsch took office, ignoring the fact that this is a greater number than the Republican Senate filled during all of Clinton's second term. He mentions that 38 of the vacant bench positions are emergencies, without mentioning that nearly all of them were designated as such by Rehnquist in the spring of 2000.

In a final amazing twist and spin that would leave Michelle Kwan clinging to the rink-side boards, blinking her eyes and shaking her head in an effort to recover, Rush blames Leahy for the "politicization" of the judiciary and "filling the federal judiciary with left-of center judges". He supposedly did this while simultaneously only filling a quarter of the vacancies. Very good, Rush.

No wonder even Rush concludes Leahy will be ranked as a great senator! Of course, Rush thinks historians are all liberals, because unlike him, they strive for accuracy.

As a liberal, I'm going to enjoy Rush's columns. Unless you went to the time and trouble of taping his show, it was too much effort for most folks to track his lies, evasions, distortions and outright frauds. Having his words in print right in front of us will make our lives ever so much easier!

In his coda, Rush accuses the "Great" senator of "ensuring the administrative necessity of military commissions." Wishful thinking on Rush's part, of course. He wants the dishonesty and subterfuge of this junta administration hidden by kangaroo courts.

But because there are still Americans of courage and character like Senator Leahy, the efforts to establish kangaroo courts for Putsch will fail.