by John Burl Smith

Turnout 75 %: Americans must face the truth about how and why our country is deadlocked and cannot extricate itself from its current Election 2000 dilemma. America has come full circle to the same place it was when the founders debated and accepted the Great Compromise, a death knell to democracy. The frightening truth about George W. Bush, Jr. and Republicans is their plan to turn back the clock on black people by openly re-instituting the rule of law enforced before Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. Bush stated unequivocally, "I will appoint judges who will strictly interpret or construct the Constitution." The actions of the Supreme Court show how far such judges will go to impose their racist philosophy on America.

One cannot change history; one can only lie about it is a reproof for those who refuse to accept the record following objective observations and analysis of historical facts. The darkest lie is not strong enough to resist the light of truth forever. Even though a lie can overcome truth, it can never vanquish it. Truth will find a way to shine through the darkest cloud. Buried in the deepest pit and covered over by the thickest coat of inveracity, like a flower that grows up through concrete, truth will find the light of day. So, it will be in Florida. The votes will be counted and America will finally know that Vice President Albert Gore won its 25 electoral votes through the process mandated by the Florida legislature. This is history; hence, the truth will be known!

The Vice President should file a rite of Habeas Corpus to examine the body -the votes- in this case. The Court has yet to look at the corpse (the votes) in order to ascertain exactly what the only real witnesses in this case have to say. Imagine being on trial for murder and the prosecutor produces your gun as the murder weapon. He also calls witnesses, who swear you shot the victim. Furthermore, the victim is truly dead, but no one has ever examined the body to determine the actual cause of death. When the defense raises this issue, the judge says, "looking at the body will not substantially change the outcome of the trial." Consequently, under these circumstances, the Court finds you guilty of murder because the judge believes to examine the body is so gruesomely horrible that looking at it will cause irreparable harm to the prosecutor's career. The question is, would you accept this verdict because you are told "it is for the good of country?" This is the position the Vice President of the United States of America finds himself.

George W. Bush, Jr. and Republican operatives have cloaked themselves in what they call "the rule of law." All laws in America are supposed to flow from the Constitution. They point to Article II Section 1 as their justification for refusing to count black people's votes. Moreover, they jump over Article I of the Constitution, which invests all legislative powers in Congress to determine how representation will be apportioned among the States. "Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all other persons." The seed of America's present dilemma is this cataclysmic paradox. George W. Bush, Jr., Republicans and other strict constructionists are talking out of both sides of their mouths about the Constitution and whether or not the 13^th, 14^th and 15^th Amendments repealed the 3/5ths Compromise of Article I Section 2 of the Constitution. The strict constructionists state's righters on the Supreme Court have impugned their last bit of integrity and have shown they are flaming hypocrites.

Hypocrites to the last man, strict constructionists say the aforementioned section was not repealed after the Civil War, therefore the 13^th, 14^th and 15^th Amendments are unconstitutional. Simultaneously, George W. Bush, Jr.'s lawyers are before the Supreme Court arguing on behalf of white votes in Florida for "equal protection" which is based entirely in the 14^th Amendment. "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." After winning a decision regarding absentee ballots in Martin and Seminole Counties to count ballots, Bush's lawyers used rights gained by blacks under the XV Amendment's "equal protection" clause to prevent counting their votes in violation of the 15^th Amendment's guarantee that the right to vote "will not be abridged." This is the nature of the great paradox the Supreme Court has bitten into trying to preserve white privilege. The crux of the matter is how to enforce Article I-3/5ths Compromise- without repealing the 13^th, 14^th and 15^th Amendments. This constitutional crisis is not about who will become President but rather, does these three amendments mean anything for black people, or is it under Bush and strict constructionists these rights only apply to white people?

The truth is black people in Florida were systematically disenfranchised based on the 3/5ths formula from Article I Section 2 of the Constitution - " adding to the whole number of free persons...., three-fifths of all other persons." If the Vice President concedes to George W. Bush, Jr. and agrees that he and the Republicans have the right to steal an election, the Democrats are accepting being a second class party in much the same way as the Republicans were before 1994. How will blacks be able to trust a party that campaigned on "fighting for the people," but quits like Ehud Barak as soon as the fighting gets hot? Black people are asking, "Do Democrats stand for one-person one-vote self determination democracy or white domination?" History will show the choice was before America and the Democrats caved in from pressure to preserve white privilege!

Back   ||  ICIM Home   ||  THINC  ||  The DISH || Broadsides