I admit it…I was slow to join the impeachment bandwagon. I just foresaw a circus of epic proportions, with the established media connections to the Republican noise machine giving us the disadvantage in public sentiments, perhaps dooming the effort. But with overwhelming evidence of a complete disregard for the rule of law to the point of near sociopathy, it’s hard not to come to any other conclusion than it’s time to quite seriously put impeachment back on the table.
Lane Hudson at HuffPo has more:
There are so many things that this Administration has done to betray the confidence of the American people. Rather than provide a long list of them here, I’ll give you some links to peruse:
*The Impeachment of George W. Bush: A Practical Guide for Concerned Americans
*The Case for Impeachment: The Legal Argument for Removing George W. Bush From Office
*Impeach the President: The Case Against Bush And Cheney
(the above are all books which make detailed legal arguments for impeachment)
*Citizen for Ethics and Responsibility’s new report: ‘Crossing the Line’
*Here is an article in the Washington Post on the historical background of Impeachment
*And finally, some fellow bloggers have plenty of comments about this: Mahablog, Down With Tyranny, Seeing The Forest, The Young Turks, and Crooks and Liars.Tell Speaker Pelosi to put Impeachment BACK ON THE TABLE. Her phone number is 202-225-0100.
Doing nothing is not an option. Complacency at this moment in history is a moral crime.
2 Trackbacks To “Put Impeachment Back On The Table“
Hell yes.
Enough of this shit.
I’ll even buy the table.
Please. He’s not going to be impeached any sooner than I’ll be.
maybe they’ll help kucinich in his impeachment against cheney.
I’m not to sure about this. Digby has a good post up regarding this. Unfortunately, I can’t get the link as I’m behind a firewall at work.
Do yourselves a favor though, look it up.
“with the established media connections to the Republican noise machine giving us the disadvantage in public sentiments,”
WTF?
What ever happened to being guilty, or doing the right thing?
And what is this ‘us’ you speak of?
Who cares if the ‘us’ are a group of aliens with peni for noses, breaking the law is brealing the law,… why did that stop in 2000?
Put impeachment back on the table, and put the HANDCUFFS on cheney & his side kick bush jr.
Welcome Aboard, Nicole!
Impeach, indict, imprison
And before the “We can’t do it, We don’t have the votes in Congress” crowd chimes in-YEAH WE KNOW. BUT WE CAN STILL KEEP CALLING FOR IT.
There is a story over on Raw that Robert Novak says he has no regrets about outing Plame and would do it again.
THESE PEOPLE ARE OUT OF CONTROL!!!!
We need to start impeachment even if it doesn’t make it before the end of his term… we have to make a stand against this immoral, money-grubbing, evil administration. If we don’t, you can bet your bottom dollar that they have more crimes up their sleeves and we will regret it!
Thank you, Nicole. I appreciate the list of links.
I too was slower to join the impeachment bandwagon than many but more than enough became more than enough for me a long time ago.
Visit this site http://www.impeachbush.org/site/PageServer and vote to impeach.
Maybe if they hear from enough of us Nancy Pelosi will put impeachment on the table instead of blinking uncontrollably everytime the criminal and lawless Bush-Cheney gang says “fuck you” to our constitution and laws.
In principle Bush and Cheney should have been impeached years ago, but in practicality there are two points to consider:
1: Quite simply, our Majority Leader and Speaker are equivocating whimps who would never take such a decisive measure with regards to ANY policy issue, much less removal from office.
2: To initiate impeachment procedures while they have only a year and a half left in office would be seen by many centrists as a largely symbolic and pointless act, and one would make democrats appear to be more interested in retribution than progress, putting many of the presidential candidates in a precarious position and costing the party some of the huge leverage it has going into the ‘08 election as a whole. It’ll be better to grin and bear the beating for another year and then go about repairing all the damage afterwards than it would be to risk polarizing everybody, firing up the right wingers, and electing someone who WON’T undo everything that Bush has done.
J - your argument makes perfect sense except… these guys don’t play by the rules and who knows what else they are going to pull off. I am sure they have more machinations planned and probably already in progress.
I don’t know if this has been implemented yet, but I would think a wiki detailing the various grievances and legal remedies would be very helpful in keeping track of all the Bush-Cheney presidency has perpetrated.
Just a thought.
I was slower than many to join the impeachment movement but more than enough became more than enough for me about six months ago when I voted to impeach on this site http://www.impeachbush.org/site/PageServer Go here to cast your vote.
Maybe if congress hears from enough of us Nancy Pelosi will put impeachment on the table instead of just blinking uncontrollably everytime the Bush-Cheney gang says “fuck you” to our laws and constitution.
Welcome aboard, Nicole!
We have over 100,000 signatures on Ten Reasons to Impeach Bush and Cheney:
http://www.democrats.com/peopl.....k/88?ad=d0
Let’s get to a million!
We cannot remain a country with rule of law if the only crimes prosecuted are those that are considered slam dunks. The Congress has to impeach, or it appears that it is willing to sweep high crimes and misdemeanors under the rug out of fear.
That’s actually exactly what I wrote to her about a few days ago when the Libby travesty went down. We need action by this Congress that restores the functioning checks and balances.
It’s nice to see some admission of guilt from one of the left’s biggest gatekeeper’s. Yes, you should have supported impeachment earlier, and you should never have banned certain subject-matter (don’ worry I won’t say it!) from your otherside impressive website. But it’s not too late to change. The important thing is not getting the Deomcrats in, it’s getting these gangsters out before it’s too late. Tell the truth. Don’t bann subject matter from your site. The truth will not set you free but it will sure lock these bastards up for a long time. 911 . . . hmmmm, time for a rethink on policy. . . ?
I haven’t posted on this site in months but Bush’s decision scares the crap out of me more than supposed terror threats.
Most government leaders who ignore the rule of law in their own country and show contempt to other leaders around the world are usually annoying little ticks from some third world backwater trying to scam some funds from the international community to funnel most of it to some account in the Caymans.
This is different. The man in charge of the largest arsenal of deadly weapons the world has ever seen has just sent a massive FUCK YOU to the 70+% of people who think he is doing a bad job and want him out of it. He has now put down a statement that the law is beneath him and anyone he conciders useful to him or protects his arse.
The rather scary question is this:
WHAT THE HELL ELSE IS THIS NUTTY B’STARD DOING TO DO NEXT?
lol! Stupid negatives.
I applaud you for achieving that realization, Nicolle.
Forget it. The Republicans are still very much in control of the congress. The weak-ass Democrats are too intimidated to do a damn thing. I am totally sick and disgusted at the people who are supposed to represent me . Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid both need step out of the way and let someone else take control who isn’t so intimidated by the Repubs. Until then, I hold NO HOPE . Even if they failed, I would at least give them credit for trying. Nancy Pelosi said they were were going to “clean out the swamp” It seems to me she and Harry Reid ARE part of the swamp.
What can be done that won’t be blocked by Republicans? They’ve blocked a impotent flogging of our AG, Fredo, they’ll block anything and everything. This is where Congress needs to use their imagination, and use it very boldly, just as the White House has with signing statements, fourth branches of government, etc. Rahm Emmanuel did it well when he proposed cutting off funding for Cheney. Can Congress cut off power to the White House? Authorize security forces to surround both the White House and the Naval Observatory? Something similar to those moves would be the bold actions we would need for the final 18 months of Bush/Cheney.
I agree something must be done, but do something that’s effective, not something that will die a quick death and possibly be an embarassment that may lead to many voters with cartoon watching attention spans crossing over to vote Republican in ‘08.
Never happen. The Dems are the other side of the same coin.
Maybe Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney should be put on trial as war
criminals by the world court.
Rather than wasting time, energy, and resources on calling for an Impeachment than will not happen, it seems to me that all effort should be put toward getting out of Iraq and electing the best possible President in 2008..Libby’s commutation simply won’t be enough for serious consideration by this Congress, much less conviction…a petition of 100,000 (not even one of several million) will not get anyone’s attention..sad, sure, but true.
By: Nicole Belle on Wednesday, July 4th, 2007 at 12:52 PM - PDT
I admit it…I was slow to join the impeachment bandwagon. I just foresaw a circus of epic proportions, with the established media connections to the Republican noise machine giving us the disadvantage in public sentiments, perhaps dooming the effort. But with overwhelming evidence of a complete disregard for the rule of law to the point of near sociopathy, it’s hard not to come to any other conclusion than it’s time to quite seriously put impeachment back on the table.
You are pathetic!!! Suspending Habeas Corpus( detaining anyone indefinitely), Torture , Unlawful domestic wiretapping, Bush’s right to unilaterally declare anyone an enemy combatant……etc etc were not enough. But Scooter Libby not going to jail, that is horrendous, that killed our democracy. Set you priorities straight my dear!!!
Hopefully Nicole, you’ll get the Kucinich/Duncan Hunter debate up! Kucinich really impressed me! He may look like a cute little Kebler elf but he fought like a tazmanian devil.
I called yesterday Adam Smith, my congressman from Washington State. Here is his response. I don’t agree with him and will let know tomorrow.
Dear Ron ,
Thank you for taking the time to contact me in support of legislation from Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) to initiate impeachment proceedings against Vice President Richard Cheney (H. Res. 333). I appreciated hearing from you and would like to take a moment to respond.
As you know, impeachment involves the legislative branch of our government (Congress) bringing accusations against officials such as cabinet members, judges, the Vice President, and the President. The power to impeach resides solely with the House of Representatives; the power to try an impeachment case resides solely with the Senate. The Chief Justice of the United States presides over the inquiry in case of impeachment of the President. Traditionally, the House, after drawing up and voting on articles of impeachment that specify the charges and their factual bases, assigns congressional “managers” (prosecutors) to present the case before the Senate. At the start of the trial, the members of the Senate are sworn in as “jurors” by the chief justice. A two-thirds vote of the senators present is required to convict. Punishment is limited to removal from office, though disqualification from future office is considered to fall within the discretion of the Senate, and the acts of the accused are still subject to criminal proceedings in the courts. Impeachable acts cited in the Constitution are “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
One of the most difficult questions raised by these provisions is: What are high crimes and misdemeanors? The conclusion reached by most scholars is that clear criminal law violations represent impeachable offenses, whereas misconduct that is not necessarily criminal but that undermines the integrity of the office (such as disregard of constitutional responsibilities) may rise to the level of an impeachable offense. Partly because of this, impeachment has taken place infrequently. By making impeachment difficult, the Constitution guards against the intrusion of the legislature into the business of the judiciary and executive branches. It also ensures that impeachment remains primarily a legal, or judicial, procedure rather than a political process.
I agree with you on the need to confront Vice President Cheney on the points where he has been dishonest with the American people. As for impeachment itself, that is a very serious step to take and one I cannot support at this time. I strongly believe that it should be reserved for the gravest of occasions, because respecting our process of democratic governance is such an important foundation in our country. I am concerned that pursuing impeachment would bitterly divide our country - which is part of the reason why the Constitutional standard for impeachment is so high.
Please know I strongly disapprove of this Administration’s policies and will continue to vigorously fight Administration initiatives that I believe are not in the best interests of the nation. On issue after issue, the Administration’s policies have failed, and it is our responsibility to push for a change of course. As a member of both of the House Armed Services and Foreign Affairs Committees, I am working with my colleagues to identify policy options to do this. I am pleased to see much greater oversight taking place in Congress this year and look forward to continuing to challenge the Administration’s actions and to propose more suitable alternatives. We must continue to exercise our oversight responsibilities and investigate the Administration whenever we believe improper or ineffective actions are being taken.
Again, thank you for letting me know about your support for this resolution. Please be assured that I will continue to challenge the Vice President when I disagree with him. Should you have any specific ideas for policies to advance as an alternative to this Administration’s agenda, please do not hesitate to let me know.
Nancy Pelosi’s mailbox is full. Imagine that.
Hey gang, can someone point me to an article about, or remind me of why the scooter libby issue is “no different than what clinton did” which i am hearing from the right. also, don’t most presidents pardon a long list of people at the end of their terms?
www.theethicalscumbag.blogspot.com
One of the other sites suggested for everybody to get paper plates with impeach on them and send them to Nancy Pelosi.
I was also against impeachment last November, knowing that it will take a herculean effort to begin to reverse the disastrous direction BushCo has taken us. But I didn’t dream he would have the hubris to create even more disasters.
The revelations over the past few months of crimes committed by this misadministration have forced me to change my mind. We owe it to our Constitution and our republic to impeach Cheney/Bush/Gonzales, and I am contacting my Republican, right-wing Congressmen to demand that. Every week…just so they know we are paying attention!
Strawberry @ 28:
Strawberry, I haven’t seen any video of it. If you do, please email it to either John Amato or the Site Team and we’ll put it up.
And to TonyD, I didn’t say that the Libby commutation was the straw that broke this camel’s back, although I do see how that could have been construed. It was actually the tearing down of habeas corpus (card-carrying member of the ACLU here) that made me realize that the only way to stop Bush was to impeach him.
However, up until that point, I had been reticent to advocate for impeachment, simply because I know that with the moral equivalency with which the Republicans operate, we were opening up ourselves to a terrible precedent of having every Democratic elected official under threat of impeachment for every perceived infraction and I just thought it would be a circus.
Now I’m willing to submit to the circus to get my country back.
Gene @ 3:
…that’s neat, but what is wrong with talking about it?
it seems you have to have pictures of cheney and bush hacking up babies!!!
wtf does it take???
im an old school republican that is so pissed and my party im hangin’ here!!
#28-Strawberry
I second the motion. Do opponents of impeachment believe that Article II Section 4 [the impeachment clause] should be repealed? Those who rail against impeachment never see fit to address this question. That article was put in the Constitution for a specific purpose, to hold those in power accountable for their misdeeds. The longer one puts off impeachment, the greater the likelihood that Cheney/Bush will start a war against Iran, effectively ordering a death sentence against hundreds of thousands of Iranians. By ordering air strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities, it will ensure that many thousands of Iranians will have their underground water supply poisoned by U.S. bombs. There is already enough evidence against Cheney for Congress to proceed against him. The safety of Iran, as well as the rest of the world, depends upon it. I suspect that once impeachment proceedings were to begin against Cheney, that is when one will see a lot more members of Congress getting on board with Kucinich’s proposal. Meanwhile, try and get that video of Kucinich debating Hunter on C & l!
To Toby Keith — your wrong. The Dixie Chicks are right.
I’ve corresponded congressman Dave Thompson (D-Ca) for the past 18 months in an attempt to persuade him to reconsider his opposition to impeachment. He’s a good man. A decorated, Airborne Vietnam vet, he opposed the Iraq war resolution, and has consistently fought the good fight against the administration.
Nevertheless, upon hearing of the Libby obstruction of justice commutation, I contacted his office and made clear that should he fail to change his mind and support impeachment of Bush and Cheney, I would not support his next bid for re-election. I meant it, too.
Professor Farnsworth @ 35:
Nothing wrong with it, but it is a waste of time and energy.
[Your ‘concern’ about our time is touching-Sitemonitor]
Impeach Gonzales first.
I don’t know why no one in congress is talking about this. He’s lying over and over again.
Nancy take impeachment off the table and put it on the house floor
Ryan @ 40:
No, it’s the most sensible, responsible and patriotic thing to do.
TonyD @ 27:
Don’t forget, the most serious criminals are often only brought down on their petty crimes. High level connections and propaganda can protect them on the big ones…
By my thinking trial and execution for war crimes and treason on FOX live is the appropriate punishment so impeachment is the _least_ we can do.
I’m serious. After the hundreds of thousands dead (remember the Iraqis) and the hundreds of billions stolen one of my biggest fears is that the “naughty, naughty!” slap on the wrist of impeachment is hardly an adequate deterrent to the next white house doing it all over again.
Which is to say, how much shame could _you_ bear for a billion dollars?