Bush, Estrada & N.O.W.: Allies Against Life & Speech
Boulder, CO - The America First Party condemns in the strongest possible terms the continued actions of the Bush Administration to undermine constitutional rights by arguing that political protests constitute a criminal conspiracy under the RICO statues. The Bush Administration's argument before the US Supreme Court on the side of N.O.W in N.O.W v. Scheidler is an attack not just on free speech rights in general, but also on proponents of the right to life.
"This case demonstrates President Bush's distaste for the constitutional rights of every American citizen. The little known history of the case shows that President Bush is no friend of the unborn," said AFP National Chairman Dan Charles.
Mr. Charles continued, "This case should have been over years ago. Lower courts had defended the right to protest by throwing the case out. But Miguel Estrada, a political appointee of the first Bush Administration, argued for the application of racketeering statutes against pro-life advocates before the Supreme Court. Showing his true colors, the current President Bush has appointed this same man to the federal bench. Miguel Estrada is not a friend of the Constitution. He is not a friend of the unborn."
AFP National Secretary John Pittman Hey added, "Ted Olsen and his flunkies have taken an axe to the First Amendment at the Supreme Court this morning. They assaulted two of the most precious human rights we all have--the right to life and the right to Freedom of Speech and to political dissent. Bush Republicans have a history of attacking free speech and supporting the killing of unborn children while giving mere lip service to the pro-life cause. I am disgusted that President Bush is asking the Court to further criminalize political speech and make the country safe for baby killers."
Pointing out the wide-ranging implications of this case, Tennessee State Chairman James Jones said, "The Bush Administration has taken a position that would have resulted in civil liability and felony prosecution for the lunch counter protesters of the civil rights movement. Whether it is standing up for civil rights, or defending the Bill of Rights, or working to save the innocent unborn from destruction, or appointing sound judges, George Bush and the Republicans have shown themselves to be wholly untrustworthy. And the Democrats, as usual, are letting the Administration have its way with the Constitution without uttering so much as a peep in protest."
