Posted on 02/10/2006 10:46:41 PM PST by balch3
AP) - Sen. Jeff Bingaman asked Veterans Affairs Secretary James Nicholson for a thorough inquiry of his agency's investigation into whether a VA nurse's letter criticizing the Bush administration amounted to "sedition."
The agency's human resources office ultimately cleared her of any wrongdoing, but Bingaman, D-N.M., said Tuesday he was concerned the VA investigated Laura Berg of Albuquerque in the first place.
Merely opposing government policies and expressing a desire to change course "does not provide reason to believe that a person is involved in illegal subversive activity," he said.
Bingaman said such investigations raise "a very real possibility of chilling legitimate political speech."
"In a democracy, expressing disagreement with the government's actions does not amount to sedition or insurrection," he wrote. "It is, and must remain, protected speech. Although it may be permissible to implement restrictions regarding a government employee's political activities during work hours or on government premises, such employees do not surrender their right to freedom of speech when they enlist in government service."
Bingaman said he wants the matter investigated so VA officials will have guidance about handling similar situations in the future.
Berg, a clinical nurse specialist, wrote a letter in September to a weekly Albuquerque newspaper criticizing how the administration handled Hurricane Katrina and the Iraq War. She urged people to "act forcefully" to remove an administration she said played games of "vicious deceit."
She signed the letter as a private citizen, and the VA had no reason to suspect she used government resources to write it, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, which last week asked the government to apologize to Berg for seizing her computer and investigating her.
VA human resources chief Mel Hooker had said in a Nov. 9 letter that his agency was obligated to investigate "any act which potentially represents sedition," the ACLU said.
I work for the VA. I love hearing this. God bless our Veterans.
So when are they going to start investigating for sedition all the Dem Senators, with the exception of a few.
Bingaman should also note that no one speaking out against Bush is being audited by the IRS, unlike a previous unnamed President who was once Governor of Arkansas and First Lady who is now occupying a seat in the Seat and has aspirations on being the first female President.
No doubt she's serving as the "chair", too!
Cheers!
To "act forcefully" to "remove a government" doesn't exactly conjure up visions of a peaceful election- where force would be totally uncalled for and inappropriate. It suggests a violent coup. Force is a violent action, an act of coercion rather than an action of someone in a democratic society.
She probably didn't mean to suggest a coup but such a suggestion would understandably draw some attention.
She should realize it was a stupid way to express herself and just let it go like freepers have when they goofed and got a visit from the secret service over something they said concerning Clinton. I don't recall anyone here running to the ACLU or crying to their congressman to waste ungodly amounts of taxpayer's money to investigate the Secret Service for calling them on their own wordy messes.
She's at fault for her predicament - the issue would never have come up but for her own very poor choice of words. She should have said "need to get active to remove this government in the next election," or "need to get out the vote," and leave the word "force" out of it. But no, this is a liberal- instead of taking responsibility for a poor choice of words that could lead people to think she meant something other than legal political action, she and her liberal cohorts are going to whine about it endlessly and find some way to blame other people and make totally innocent people pay up.
"No doubt she's serving as the "chair", too!"
"Cheers!"
Dang, I hate it when I do that, Senior Moment, LOL. That should be Senate.
They cleared her.
I wish that NC would grow some balls, apparently someone at the UNC newspaper posted some cartoons of Muhamed. Off course they did not show the pics on the news.
I am so damn sick of this PC BS.
Did the spell corrector do that to you?
No, overly tired fingers.
BTTT
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