Bush Threatens Hate Crimes Law Veto

The White House has issued a threat to veto the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act if it is enacted by Congress. The press release sounds as if it were dictated by James Dobson and Tony “Klu Klux” Perkins. What makes the situation all the more abhorrent is that this President, who has subverted the U. S. Constitution probably more than any President in history, cites possible constitutional questions as part of his justification. Let’s get real. The real reason for the veto threat is that the far right wingnuts who are the last portion of the American public to support Bush/Cheney are demanding it. These people are truly horrible!!!!!!!!!!! Here’s the disingenuous White House statement and related commentary with my comments in italics:

"The Administration favors strong criminal penalties for violent crime, including crime based on personal characteristics, such as race, color, religion, or national origin unless Daddy Dobson says it’s OK.

"However, the Administration believes that H.R. 1592 is unnecessary and constitutionally questionable, even more so than my signing statements and other violations of the law."
The White House statement said that state and local criminal laws already provide penalties for the crimes defined by the bill and "there has been no persuasive demonstration of any need to federalize such a potentially large range of violent crime enforcement, even though the number of hate crimes is up all around the country."

On the issue of constitutionality the White House statement said terms of the bill could be enforced only "if done in the implementation of a power granted to the Federal government, such as the power to protect Federal personnel, to regulate interstate commerce, or to enforce equal protection of the laws. [The legislation] is not by its terms limited to the exercise of such a power, and it is not at all clear that sufficient factual or legal grounds exist to uphold this provision." Again, when has the law stopped Bush/Cheney, who think the Geneva Conventions are not applicable to them. What absolute hypocrites.