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Fascist Coup Now Looming
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The following wire service stories are based on an article in the current issue of Newsweek.
Today the entire Sturmabteilung of fascist radio talk show hosts -- Michael Graham, Laura Ingram, Rush Limbaugh, Gordon Liddy, and Sean Hannity -- are all churning out a discussion of this item, as per the talking points faxed to them daily from the White House.
Interestingly, many of them are taking the position that the elections should not be postponed, clearly as a means of introducing the alien concept of martial law somewhat gradually.
Note that in 1864, in the midst of a civil war, the presidential and congressional elections went forward on schedule, as did the congressional elections in 1862. In 2002 the Republicans were confident of keeping control of the Congress, so the issue of calling off the elections never came up. Now, we may assume that the confidential polls of the Republicans indicate that Bush is further behind than the polls made public by the controlled corporate media.
At a minimum, the Bush faction is determined to secure four more years by mercilessly pounding the electorate with their terror demagogy. Beyond that, the option of an actual WMD terror attack is clearly growing more plausible every day. Remember also that in 2004 we are due for a party re-alignment in the series 1828, 1860, 1896, 1932, 1968. If the 9-11 myth is demolished and the terror card made ineffective for mass manipulation, there could be a transition to a more progressive party system. This would probably include the collapse of the Republican Party. If the 9-11 myth and the tool of terrorism are allowed to stand, we risk a party re-alignment into fascism. This makes the Independent International Truth Commission on 9/11 all the more urgent.
In the meantime, the only effective response to an attempt to cancel the elections and freeze Bush in power with martial law would be an open-ended general strike for basic democratic rights, with mass demonstrations everywhere. This worked against the Kapp-Luttwitz putsch in Germany in 1920, and it has worked against the neo-fascist Aznar in Spain in the days just after March 11. This is the response that has to be organized with trade unionists and progressive activists of all types. We should take our stand on the "Freedom From Fear" plank in the Atlantic Charter of 1941. Congressmen must go on record now stating that any large-scale terror attack will be the occasion for the impeachment of Bush and his advisors and cabinet for gross incompetence and suspected complicity in letting it happen. Maverick members of Congress should be contacted on this at once. It's time to call some radio talk show hosts and let them know what We The People think of their treasonous plot. Outside of the US, it is time to organize parliamentary questions asking what other governments intend to do to bloc a looming coup which if successful would signal the start of a new fascist era worldwide.
Activism has never been at such a premium as today. The only effective orientation is now an outward agitational one. We must demand nothing less than Constitutional government. The Bush-neocon clique is doubtless scanning the public reaction for a backlash of militant resistance to the mostrosity they are proposing. Let's make sure they see one. WGT
Counterterrorism officials look to postpone elections
From staff and wire reports
WASHINGTON � Counterterrorism officials are looking into the possibility of postponing the November presidential election if there is a terrorist attack at election time, Newsweek reported Sunday.
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge warned last week that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network may attack within the USA to try to disrupt the election.
The magazine cited unnamed sources who said the Department of Homeland Security asked the Justice Department for advice last week.
Newsweek said DeForest Soaries, chairman of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, wants Ridge to ask Congress to pass legislation giving the government power to cancel or reschedule a federal election. Soaries said New York suspended primary elections on the day of the Sept. 11 attacks, but the federal government does not appear to have that authority.
The disclosure comes only a few days after U.S. authorities said they believe that al-Qaeda is planning a "large-scale" attack in the USA aimed at disrupting the presidential campaign and November elections.
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Thursday that the party conventions were among the possible targets of such an attack, although he said there had been no particular threat to either convention. Democrats meet in Boston later this month; the Republican convention begins in late August in New York City.
Ridge said the intelligence was gathered from "credible" sources, but he acknowledged that it did not yield any specific information about a possible attack.
U.S. officials have been particularly concerned about an attack during the presidential campaign since the Madrid railway bombings in March. The bombings, which killed nearly 200 people, occurred on the eve of national elections. Spain's ruling party was ousted.
The Associated Press.
Report: Terror could postpone U.S. vote
Washington, DC, Jul. 12 (UPI) -- The U.S. government is exploring the steps that would be needed to postpone the November election in the event of a major terrorist attack.
A report in the July 19 issue of Newsweek said the Department of Homeland Security asked the Justice Department last week to determine what the legal mechanism for calling a halt to a national election would be.
While a local primary election in New York was postponed during the Sept. 11 terror attack, federal election officials have told the Homeland Security Department that no agency currently has the authority to put the brakes on a national vote.
DeForest Soaries, the chairman of the newly created U.S. Election Assistance Commission, has suggested Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge ask Congress to pass legislation giving Ridge the authority to make the call in the event al-Qaida follows through with its suspected desire to disrupt the elections.
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