“It was never the intent of the framers (of the Constitution) to give the president such unfettered control, particularly where his actions blatantly disregard the parameters clearly enumerated in the Bill of Rights.”

Betty Williams lashed out at Bush during a speech to hundreds of schoolchildren. “Right now, I would love to kill George Bush.” Her young audience at the Brisbane City Hall clapped and cheered.

“It’s clear that a large number of the signing statements that have been issued by this administration claim the authority to disregard the law.”

President Bush personally blocked an internal Justice Department investigation of the National Security Agency’s warrantless surveillance program earlier this year, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales said yesterday.

The White House has conceded that terrorism suspects held by the United States have a right under international law to basic human and legal protections provided by the Geneva Conventions.