# Is there this much worry about losing freedom with every American President? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 31, 2002, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390 "2002-08-31T00:00:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2002, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/21 "2002-08-31T22:29:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bricker \* > \*\*Bosca - I don’t suppose you’d care to provide a source for your claim that George H. W. Bush referred to the United States as an empire, would you? > > - Rick \*\* It’s Bosda, darnit! Second or third time you got it wrong, **Bricker**. :mad: As for your request–where do you find the texts for Presidential speeches on-line? 😕 A good URL would be a big help for everybody on this Board. ---
**Author:** ![White\_Lightning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@White\_Lightning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/White_Lightning)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/22 "2002-09-01T01:56:34Z")
[Speech](http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/06/20020601-3.html) at West Point Graduation, June 1 2002: “America has no empire to extend or utopia to establish. We wish for others only what we wish for ourselves – safety from violence, the rewards of liberty, and the hope for a better life.” As much as I’d like to believe George W. Bush thinks of America as his personal empire, **Bosda** , I couldn’t find any remarks of his to back it up. The above, saying (not exactly in the same context as your remark assumed) that America is _not_ an empire, is the closest I could find. Incidentally, texts of pretty much all the President’s public remarks can be found at or around [http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/](http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/) . It’s sortable by month (not year), type (e.g. ‘Proclamations,’ ‘Press Briefings,’ etc.), but doesn’t seem to be easily searchable. But if you know what you’re looking for, you can find pretty much anything he ever says. (I found the above speech by googling on some combination of ‘president, george bush, america, empire, speech’ or something of that nature.) ---
**Author:** ![UncleBill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/d26b3c/32.png) [@UncleBill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBill)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/23 "2002-09-01T02:11:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crazy Boob \* > \*\* The Bush administration is currently arguing that it has the legal power to declare war on Iraq without further consent from Congress. If they pull it off it would probably be the most significant Consititution-defying of precedents in American history. \*\* Speaking of cites… If you can find a reputable source for this unsupported assertation, I will mail you $50. Mind the verbage. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/d26b3c/32.png) [@UncleBill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBill)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/24 "2002-09-01T02:16:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crazy Boob \* > \*\* The Bush administration is currently arguing that it has the legal power to declare war on Iraq without further consent from Congress. If they pull it off it would probably be the most significant Consititution-defying of precedents in American history. \*\* Speaking of cites… If you can find a reputable source for this unsupported assertation, I will mail you $50. Mind the verbage. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/d26b3c/32.png) [@UncleBill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBill)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/25 "2002-09-01T02:17:32Z")
And a double post does not make it $100. ---
**Author:** ![London\_Calling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@London\_Calling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/London_Calling)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/26 "2002-09-01T10:34:17Z")
Can I have the $50 in Euro’s ? Thanks very much…oh, I guess you get to decide “reputable” on an issue that’s hardly likely to be the subject of a presidential press conference…oh well… [http://www.american-blue.com/artman/publish/article\_325.shtml](http://www.american-blue.com/artman/publish/article_325.shtml) ---
**Author:** ![UncleBill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/d26b3c/32.png) [@UncleBill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBill)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/27 "2002-09-01T15:08:08Z")
Flagrant abuse of editorial license for inflammatory articles does not count. Sorry. Here’s a quick lesson in the [US Constitution and War Powers Resolution of 1973.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=2406555#post2406555) Please pardon the coding error. ---
**Author:** ![London\_Calling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@London\_Calling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/London_Calling)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/28 "2002-09-01T16:38:54Z")
You do surprise me. Thanks _ever so much_ for the “quick lesson”. ---
**Author:** ![Monocracy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monocracy/32/4493_2.png) [@Monocracy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monocracy)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2002, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/29 "2002-09-01T17:36:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by UncleBill \* > > > [@](#): > > > > Originally posted by Crazy Boob > > The Bush administration is currently arguing that it has the legal power to declare war on Iraq without further consent from Congress. If they pull it off it would probably be the most significant Consititution-defying of precedents in American history. > > \*\*Speaking of cites… > > If you can find a reputable source for this unsupported assertation, I will mail you $50. Mind the verbage. \*\* > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by London\_Calling_ > \*\*Can I have the $50 in Euro’s ? Thanks very much…oh, I guess you get to decide “reputable” on an issue that’s hardly likely to be the subject of a presidential press conference…oh well… > > [http://www.american-blue.com/artman...ticle\_325.shtml\*\*](http://www.american-blue.com/artman...ticle_325.shtml**) Actually, the article says that Bush’s lawyers are telling him that he can declare war on Iraq anytime he wants, and they don’t even give any sources or quotes for this claim. The article never says that the Bush administration claims it has legal power to declare war. Don’t expect $50 anytime soon. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2002, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/30 "2002-09-02T00:12:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by White Lightning \* > \*\*[Speech](http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/06/20020601-3.html) at West Point Graduation, June 1 2002: “America has no empire to extend or utopia to establish. We wish for others only what we wish for ourselves – safety from violence, the rewards of liberty, and the hope for a better life.” > > As much as I’d like to believe George W. Bush thinks of America as his personal empire, **Bosda** , I couldn’t find any remarks of his to back it up. The above, saying (not exactly in the same context as your remark assumed) that America is _not_ an empire, is the closest I could find. > > Incidentally, texts of pretty much all the President’s public remarks can be found at or around [http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/](http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/) . It’s sortable by month (not year), type (e.g. ‘Proclamations,’ ‘Press Briefings,’ etc.), but doesn’t seem to be easily searchable. But if you know what you’re looking for, you can find pretty much anything he ever says. (I found the above speech by googling on some combination of ‘president, george bush, america, empire, speech’ or something of that nature.) \*\* Ummm…I recall Bush the Elder making the remark. Where can I find _his_ speeches? ---
**Author:** ![White\_Lightning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@White\_Lightning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/White_Lightning)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2002, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/31 "2002-09-03T03:57:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by **Bosda Di’Chi of Tricor** \* > Ummm…I recall Bush the Elder making the remark. > > Where can I find _his_ speeches? Oh, word. I misread your first post. I have no idea. The cite I referenced doesn’t (I think) archive anything previous to 2001. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Sivalensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Sivalensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sivalensis)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2002, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/32 "2002-09-03T04:26:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crazy Boob \* > \*\*The Bush administration is currently arguing that it has the legal power to declare war on Iraq without further consent from Congress. If they pull it off it would probably be the most significant Consititution-defying of precedents in American history. \*\* **Crazyboob** , I think the problem with what you’ve said here is that Dubya can’t _declare war_ as you said in the above quote. He can invade Iraq, which is what he’s proposing to do without congress’ approval, but he can’t actually declare a war without congress. Semantics aside, it’s still a bad idea ---
**Author:** ![Sivalensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Sivalensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sivalensis)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2002, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/33 "2002-09-03T04:35:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crazy Boob \* > \*\*The Bush administration is currently arguing that it has the legal power to declare war on Iraq without further consent from Congress. If they pull it off it would probably be the most significant Consititution-defying of precedents in American history. \*\* **Crazyboob** , I think the problem with what you’ve said here is that Dubya can’t _declare war_ as you said in the above quote. He can invade Iraq, which is what he’s proposing to do without congress’ approval, but he can’t actually declare a war without congress. Semantics aside, it’s still a bad idea ---
**Author:** ![Sivalensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Sivalensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sivalensis)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2002, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/34 "2002-09-03T04:40:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crazy Boob \* > \*\*The Bush administration is currently arguing that it has the legal power to declare war on Iraq without further consent from Congress. If they pull it off it would probably be the most significant Consititution-defying of precedents in American history. \*\* **Crazyboob** , I think the problem with what you’ve said here is that Dubya can’t _declare war_ as you said in the above quote. He can invade Iraq, which is what he’s proposing to do without congress’ approval, but he can’t actually declare a war without congress. Semantics aside, it’s still a bad idea ---
**Author:** ![Sivalensis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Sivalensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sivalensis)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2002, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390/35 "2002-09-03T04:41:47Z")
oops sorry! damn smdb! didn’t think it went through! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-this-much-worry-about-losing-freedom-with-every-american-president/126390.md?page=1)