3. Why rock the boat? Why risk the opprobium of Independent and moderate-Republican voters in November, who might think the Democrats are "piling on" for partisan, electoral reasons, and thus decide to vote for the Republican nominee?
The Democratic leadership's argument goes: "Look, the Republicans are on the ropes as a result of this incompetent, corrupt, greedy, war-mongering Administration. As a result, we're well positioned to enlarge our electoral gains in the House and the Senate, maybe to the point of being able to prevent obstructionist Republicans from filibustering needed legislation. And we may well take back the White House. So why rock the boat?
"Let's just last out CheneyBush's final months in office [the Dem argument continues]. Since we know that this unpopular pair will continue to earn the disdain and anger of the American public by continuing their extremist ways until Inauguration Day in January, it's better they remain in office rather than risk firing-up GOP-base passions during the election campaign by putting Bush and Cheney in the impeachment dock. Besides, if we impeached them, the public's focus would fasten on Bush and Cheney rather than on the Republican nominee and the dangers of a possible McCain presidency."
In short, the American people, this reasoning goes, want to quickly move away from thinking about the godawful CheneyBush Administration of the past eight years and head to a more optimistic, hopeful future.
4. The fear of being slimed. The Democrats don't want to be accused of being "unpatriotic" by putting a "wartime" President into the impeachment dock. Even though Bush is the most unpopular president in history, and though more than three-quarters of American citizens think under his leadership the country is "on the wrong track," the Democrats, anxious for a re-election sweep in the House and Senate, remain terrified of Rovian-type Swiftboating smears that could possibly cost them some votes in November and in the 2010 midterm election.
Realizing that the Bushistas still control the mainstream, corporate-owned media, and thus have all sorts of TV/radio/newspaper organizations that could dump on them big time, the Democrats continue to roll over and make nice to the shrinking but noisy Republican base and their TV/radio pundits. In other words, the Dems are perennial wimps and haven't yet figured out how best to confront the smash-mouth, take-no-prisoners politics of Rove & Co.
I strongly disagree with these four rationales for inaction, but at least I can understand where they're coming from. But the Democrats, especially their leaders, are simply ignoring some essential arguments.
REBUTTAL: WHY NOT IMPEACHMENT?
1. Nine months is a longnnnnnnnnnnnnng time. Between now and January 2009, a full nine months from now, CheneyBush are capable of doing a hell of a lot of further damage to the body politic, to the economy, to the Constitution, to the reputation of the U.S. abroad, to the armed forces, to the "enemy" countries in their crosshairs. The propaganda campaign being catapulted against Iran, for example, is nearly a carbon copy of what took place before the U.S. bombed, invaded and occupied Iraq. The neo-cons in the Administration, especially Cheney and Bush, are salivating at the prospect of an enormous air assault on Iran's military establishment and laboratories, have positioned attack forces near and around Iran, and are ready to rumble. All they need is an acceptable causus belli.
A cornered CheneyBush&Co. down in the bunker may decide, what the hell, to unleash the dogs of war again, even though their two previous unleashings have been disasters. Iraq is a catastrophic quagmire of epic proportions, and a somewhat ignored Afghanistan is heating up again with the Taliban re-asserting control of larger and larger portions of the country.
In addition, John McCain is making it clear that he will be continuing the Administration's foreign and domestic policies if he were to win in November. He's said it would be fine for America to stay in Iraq for a hundred years or more, he's indicated that he's quite amenable (maybe even eager) to "bomb, bomb, bomb" Iran, he won't do much to help deal with the consequences of global warming, he has little to offer in the way of solutions for the financial mess the country is in -- we're talking a possible foreign policy/economic/environmental apocalypse here!
2. The danger of a green light. Impeachment is an important and necessary step Americans can take to rein in an out-of-control administration that is endangering the country's national security with its reckless, extreme misadventures.
Taking the possibility of impeachment "off the table" is to fight the CheneyBush Administration with one hand tied behind the back. Bush&Co. have demonstrated over the past eight years that they understand, and respond to, only one thing: countervailing power that refuses to give in. The ultimate effective weapon in the Legislative Branch's arsenal is the fear of impeachment and conviction and removal from power, to be followed either by "war crimes" charges internationally and felony and civil-suit prosecutions inside the U.S.
Absent the possibility of impeachment, Cheney and Bush feel they have a green light to do whatever they wish in the time remaining of their tenure. Waxman and Leahy can try to humiliate and embarrass them in their Congresssional one-day hearings, but they will face no real accountability or punishment for their actions. So why not continue the corruption, attack Iran, appoint more ideologues to the courts and into high administrative positions, postpone any global-warming solutions, etc. etc.?
3. The precedent of respecting the law. Whenever leaders are not punished for their unethical policies or criminal misdeeds, the rule of law suffers. Impeachment is mentioned numerous times in the Constitution as the legal and required remedy for extreme misrule. It's the last option for citizens, through their legislators, to discipline errant leaders.
If the Congress does not impeach this president and vice president, who have nearly taken the country down as a result of their reckless, dangerous, incompetent, authoritarian behavior, then the rule of law stands for nothing. And future elected leaders can legitimately believe that they more or less can also get away with anything they wish to do.
Bernard Weiner, Ph.D. in government & international relations, has taught at universities in California and Washington, worked for two decades as a writer-editor at the San Francisco Chronicle, and currently serves as co-editor of The Crisis Papers (www.crisispapers.org).
Whyspend our time protesting in DC to be ignored? Unless we get in the streets outside our rep.s personal residences- who is going to care?
We need to mobilize locally- & demand national action. Few of us could go to Washington- but many of us- can go to our city halls or state legislatures- or local Congressional offices.
Tell the government that we're fed up with war, torture, corruption, & special interest funding our elections & our media.
Strikes have brought civil rights in the U.S. & around the world. Help make our voices louder than the mainstream media & corporate dollars.
9/11/08 to ? HOWEVER LONG IT TAKES!!
Otherwise Bush & Co will get away with it.
In our system of check & balances- the judiciary has failed & the newly elected congress has failed, & so it has fallen to the American people to set things right!
The Congress saw fit to hold impeachment hearings for Clinton's sexual behavior and lies. Now following a false-flag attack on 911 and the following invasions in the middle east, built on total lies; the almost destruction of our Constitution, and civil liberities. The forthcoming collapse of our economy; with fuel prices skyrocketing, along with food; not to mention massive job losses and home foreclosures etc etc. It's just one lie on top of another, and our bought off Congress and corporate MSM are silent. The day of a General Strike and revoult may be our only hope.
by
ronheri (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 122 comments)
on Wednesday, April 23, 2008 at 8:03:38 PM
The charges are well known, the evidence sits in a "cold case" file stamped "DO NOT DISTURB" on the top shelf all the way in the corner of "should have..." John Conyers (think "Why I Should Have Impeached Nixon") back offices somewhere "out of sight and out of mind" (pure conjecture of course).
Conyers carefully continues to document everything for the consideration of the next democratic president and he has hinted to some that he will NOT schedule an impeachment hearing until President elect Obama is sworn safely into office.
In the meantime, while waiting for his sick fantasy to come true, he will deliberately let the clock run out on the 110th Democratic Congress. It's "no sweat off his back". He'll show up for work, have a few meetings, make a few impeachment and contempt threats, put in his time to get his pay, but don't anyone ever dare say that he's not doing his official duty.
After all, he raised his right hand over 40 times to honor and defend the Constitution, and he should know, better than anyone, how to get the job done.
Apparently, Conyers has now alleviated his personal political yearnings and thoughtful donkey deliberations to number one on his priority list. For him it's more than just simply doing his constitutional duties. Now everything has to be picutre perfect for him to stand up for his nation and be counted as a real bona fide true patriot.
By the time he gets ready to stand up he won't be asked to bother.
by
Gene Cappa (8 articles, 0 quicklinks, 5 diaries, 140 comments)
on Wednesday, April 23, 2008 at 4:10:26 PM
I excorciated Pelosi for playing Footsies with GW under the lunch table, which lead to her promising to take impeachment OFF the table, others said, don't worry, she's just lulling him into a false sense of security until they get their act together.
WEll, we see where this BS toe-twiddling has gotten us now!
Remove Pelosi/ Impeach Bush/Cheney NOW!
(I like the sticker I saw: Impeach Bush, Torture Cheney!)
by
Bia Winter (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 3 diaries, 216 comments)
on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 6:57:34 AM
I have written to every member of the House Judiciary Committee (Democratic and Republican) who has not gone on record supporting impeachment hearings asking some of the exact questions you raise. Their answer "dead silence". In my view, the only real answer is to remove every last one of them from office and keep replacing Representatives until people are found (regardless of party) who understand their top job is to ensure ACCOUNTABILITY IN GOVERNMENT.
We are talking Impeachment HEARINGS. Hearings are to investigate potential wrong doing. If US Representatives don't have any questions in their minds about POTENTIAL WRONG DOING of this administration by now, they have no business being in Washington DC representing anyone. They have to be brain dead not to know any of the issues or reasons the public has called for Impeachment hearings. The lack of action, the excuses for doing nothing are in fact inexcusable. No US Representative who supports that inaction has any business representing the people of this country, period. I think we can find better individuals than that to Represent us. I think there are lots of people who would actually work to earn the $165,200/yr + fringes the members of the House of Representatives are paid.
The concern about our political parties is probably correct. We have a dichotomy of thinking in this country -- Republicans want less government, Democrats want more government. Seems few just wants BETTER government. Shouldn't that be the universal aim of every Congressional Member? Size has to do with need and function, not desire or want. We need sufficient numbers in the public to stand up and say enough is enough. Vote the bums out who don't get it. Support people who believe in "good government" of the people, by the people and for the people instead of -- of, by and for special interests. If we would hammer and hammer away at that, send donations to those individuals deserving of our support (regardless of party affiliation) we will have better Government in Washington and things would work lots better. LET'S DO THAT! I don't feel the Representatives in Congress are interested in listening anymore. I don't honestly feel they think they owe most of us any explanations or answers for anything they do. Their attitude is "what the heck do I care what you think?" Only if many band together can we replace that kind of attitude and thinking with a new vision of how Government should work.
by
Peter Wedlund (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 150 comments)
on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 9:38:23 AM
