Tag Archives | Nixon

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FFF: Freedom vs. Medals of Freedom

From the Future of Freedom Foundation’s monthly journal – Freedom vs. Medals of Freedom by James Bovard Though proximity to power is its own reward, rulers have long recognized the benefit of distributing trinkets to potential sycophants. From medieval times onwards, the English king was seen as the “fount of all honors.” The British government […]

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My Rollicking Interview with Mises Institute President Jeff Deist

I had a lively chat yesterday with Mises Institute President Jeff Deist regarding Hayek, Mencken, Washington venality, the Great Books, that bastard Nixon,  and some of my muckraking over the past decades.  I was not aware that folks had considered me a unicorn – I’m more accustomed to being compared to weasels or guttersnipes.  Their interview description refers […]

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My Wash. Times Op-Ed: Obama’s Cynicism Racketeering

Washington Times, May 19, 2014 Obama’s indiscriminate charges of cynicism Americans have good reason to doubt the president’s good intentions by James Bovard As his poll ratings sink, President Obama is ratcheting up his denunciations of cynicism. However, Mr. Obama’s crusade to rid the nation of cynicism is going badly. A presidency built on restoring […]

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Anniversary of Federal Charges Dismisssed Against Ellsberg / Pentagon Papers

On this day in 1973, all federal charges were dismissed against Daniel Ellsberg for his role in the Pentagon Papers release.  Most whistleblowers have not been as lucky since Obama took power. Here’s a piece I wrote in 2008 that was spurred by Ellsberg’s excellent memoir: COUNTERPUNCH, July 24, 2008  Leaking Crimes of State: Daniel Ellsberg’s Lessons for […]

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Counterpunch: No Cure for IRS’s Perpetual Political Outrages

COUNTERPUNCH, January 7, 2014 How the Tax Code is Used to Suppress Political Opponents Is There No Cure for the IRS’s Perpetual Political Outrages? by JAMES BOVARD The power to tax has long conferred the power to destroy one’s political opponents. When the latest IRS politicalization scandal erupted last May, many commentators talked as if […]

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Sordid History of IRS Political Abuse

From the August 2013 issue of The Future of Freedom – The Sordid History of IRS Political Abuse by James Bovard The power to tax has long conferred the power to destroy one’s political opponents. When the latest IRS politicization scandal erupted in May, many commentators talked as if the abuses were a novelty in […]

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Nixon’s Resignation & the Era of Lawless Presidents

This is the anniversary of President Richard Nixon’s resignation in 1974. Nixon knew that his defense was doomed and chose to throw in the towel without a Senate trial. But President Gerald Ford compounded the damage from Nixon’s presidency when he issued a sweeping pardon of Nixon that practically condemned future generations of Americans to […]

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