Law Prof. Jonathan Turley, "I mean, the Congress just gave the President despotic powers…and you could hear the yawn across the country..."

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The following quote is from Jonathan Turley, Constitutional Law professor at George Washington University. Click on his picture to the right to visit his website. He is speaking on the Military Commissions Act of 2006.

“The framers created a system where we did not have to rely on the good graces or good mood of the President. In fact, Madison said that he created a system essentially to be run by devils, where they could not do harm. Because we didn’t rely on their good motivations. Now we must. And people have no idea how significant this is. What…what really a kind of shame this is for the American system. What the Congress did and what the President signed today, essentially revokes over 200 years of American principles and values. It couldn’t be more significant. And the strange thing is we’ve become sort of constitutional couch potatoes. I mean, the Congress just gave the President despotic powers…and you could hear the yawn across the country as people turned to, you know, Dancing with the Stars. I mean, it’s…it’s otherworldly.”

RE: The source of this quote--I can't recall right now what film I heard him say this in, but I do remember transcribing it carefully, so it is accurate. When I find the source I'll post it.