John Ashcroft's Achievements

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John Ashcroft's Achievements
The fearsome attorney general is leaving, but his legacy, and the resistance, remain
Liberty Beat
by Nat Hentoff

<snip>
Long before the mainstream media took notice, a network of insistent resisters—a combination of demographic and political bases in hundreds of towns and cities—created a Bill of Rights dynamic that propelled town and city councils to pass Bill of Rights resolutions that vigorously informed their members of Congress that these constituents demanded they rein in Ashcroft and the rest of the Bush team who were dismantling the Constitution.

The constitutional warrior organizing much of this network through the Internet is Nancy Talanian of the first Bill of Rights Defense Committee, in Northampton, Massachusetts.

<snip>

But the legacy still continues, and will grow, under Ashcroft's designated successor, Alberto Gonzales—more on whom in next week's column. It continues along with George W. Bush, and a Democratic Party insufficiently focused—as a party—on the realization that these persistent threats to civil liberties can energize many more parts of the electorate than the party leadership was able to do in the presidential campaign.

To move in that essential direction, the Democratic Party needs a candidate, starting soon, and a stronger rank-and-file movement in Congress, that will clearly and honestly identify the Democratic Party as the party of the Constitution.

Are there any such signals on the horizon? This war on terrorism will be the longest in our history, continuing for at least decades. Libertarian Republicans are not in control of their party, and they need a lot of help across the aisle. It's only the Constitution at stake.

[Sannum]

1. He is an acomplished singer/songwriter.