January 15th, 2010 (San Diego, CA)

Has the executive branch taken on more authority than is proper for our Constitutional system, creating a dangerous "Imperial Presidency?"

Author and nationally-recognized activist David Swanson came to San Diego as part of coast-to-coast tour discussing his latest book, "Daybreak: Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Creating a More Perfect Union."

Swanson shared his views in an inteview with Mike Copass of San Diego-based Liberty One Radio. At a relatively youthful age, Swanson has already put in many years of media and activism at a high level of visibility, penning the introduction to "The 35 Articles of Impeachment and the Case for Prosecuting George W. Bush," by Congressman Dennis Kucinich, and having served inthe labor movement for a year, serving as media coordinator for the International Labor Communications Association, which is the AFL-CIO's organization of labor media outlets.

In early 2005, Swanson was instrumental in publicizing the "Downing Street Memo," which directly implicated the highest levels of American and British government in covert collaboration to "sell" the Iraq war to the public based on false information. In response to this revelation, Swanson founded AfterDowningStreet.org, and led a powerful campaign to use Congress's Constitutional authority to impeach and remove President George W. Bush and Vice President Richard B. Cheney for their role in the Iraq war deception and sales operation.

David Swanson's Speech to the San Diego Progressive Community, Jan. 15, 2010
Listen to the David Swanson Speech on The Copass Report.
Swanson serves on a number of high-profile boards and anti-war organizations. Swanson is a Director of Democrats.com, with Robert Fertik, and serves as a board member of Progressive Democrats of America, a nationwide grass-roots lobbying group.

Swanson reminded the audience that the struggle for justice may remind one of Sisyphus endlessly rolling the rock up the mountain, but that activists must find joy in the fight. Moreover, admonished the writer, "all relevant victories in social justice movements were not won by those who initiated them; rather, by successive generations that built upon their work."

More about Swanson's book "Daybreak" can be found here.

-Mike Copass, for Liberty One Radio

Experienced SCORE-San Diego volunteer counselors meet with Liberty One Radio to discuss benefits of SCORE's free one-on-one counseling and mentoring services, and low-cost workshops, to local non-profits, small-business owners and entrepreneurs. L-R: SCORE-San Diego's Past President Monty Dickinson; Counselors Laurie Ramsey, Tom Nickols and Elias Sheinberg; 2nd from R: Liberty One's Georgene Nightingale, host of the Nightingale Report featuring contributions of such local 501(c)(3) non-profits as SCORE.

Georgene Nightingale (R), host of Liberty One Radio's Nightingale Report, finalizes interview details with Counselor Tom Nickols (L) who's tailored five workshops (three are new) for SCORE-San Diego's Non-Profit Leadership Series. Natalie Haack (C), NST Public Relations Specialist, completes SCORE-San Diego's radio public service announcement.