Republican (fascist/socialist) de facto President-elect George W. Bush (having received an unlawful advantage of 52 ineligible Electoral votes), meeting with Republican state governors, at his Crawford, texas ranch says, “While I believe there’s a role for the [F]ederal government, it’s not to impose its will on states and local communities.  It’s to empower states and people and local communities to be able to realize the vast potential of this great country.”

       Postscript: Over the next five years, while the Republican party controlled the presidency, the senate and the house of representatives, CONgress voted 57 times to preempt state laws and regulations.  Bush signed into law 27 statutes usurping the prerogative of the states.

       NOTE: Although Bush uses the word “country” here, the editors believe that he meant to use the word “nation,” in which a central government, with almost limitless power, treats its constituent states as mere enclaves, provinces, or sub-divisions of its greater self; as opposed to “Union,” which is a union of sovereign States under a federal system, with a central government whose powers are strictly limited by a respected Constitution.

        [added 6/12/2023] Thanks to Jim Lorenz, Chuck McGlawn and Bill Holmes for this entry.