The American Fascist Revolution
Based on a True Story


On October 17, 2006, the president of the United States declared himself dictator.

First he signed the Military Commissions Act, which made legal some illegal things he had already been doing, like torture. Then he signed the Defense Authorization Act, which nobody in the media had even covered. They’d all so had their panties in a twist about the torture thing, they hadn’t even noticed that, at the last minute, the president had slipped in a rider about how he could declare martial law whenever he wanted to and send troops into states without their governors’ approval. He thought that was pretty neat.

The bill “includes language that subverts solid, longstanding posse comitatus statutes that limit the military's involvement in law enforcement, thereby making it easier for the President to declare martial law,” an alarmed Patrick Leahy (D.-Vermont), entered into the Congressional Record on September 29, 2006.

“There is good reason for the constructive friction in existing law when it comes to martial law declarations…. The changes to the Insurrection Act will allow the President to use the military, including the National Guard, to carry out law enforcement activities without the consent of a governor.

“When the Insurrection Act is invoked posse comitatus does not apply. Using the military for law enforcement goes against one of the founding tenets of our democracy, and it is for that reason that the Insurrection Act has only been invoked on three—three—in recent history.

“The implications of changing the act are enormous, but this change was just slipped in the defense bill as a rider with little study. Other congressional committees with jurisdiction over these matters had no chance to comment, let alone hold hearings on, these proposals… This is a terrible blow against rational defense policy-making and against the fabric of our democracy.

"Since hearing word a couple of weeks ago that this outcome was likely, I have wondered how Congress could have gotten to this point...

"It seems the changes to the Insurrection Act have survived...because the Pentagon and the White House want it. It is easy to see the attempts of the President and his advisors to avoid the debacle involving the National Guard after Hurricane Katrina, when Governor Blanco of Louisiana would not give control of the National Guard over to President and the Federal chain of command. Governor Blanco rightfully insisted that she be closely consulted and remain largely in control of the military forces operating in the State during that emergency. This infuriated the White House, and now they are looking for some automatic triggers—natural disasters, terrorist attacks, or a disease epidemic—to avoid having to consult with the Governors.

"Because of this rubberstamp Congress...we fail our Constitution, neglecting the rights of the States, when we make it easier for the President to declare martial law and trample on local and state sovereignty."

Of course a pansy Democrat like Leahy was going to say that. But hey, it was too late now.

The president loved being dictator.

He thought he might invoke martial law just for the hell of it, just to see how it felt.