It's time the Democrats in the congress did what the vast majority of democrats want, and the constitution demands-- impeachment hearings for Cheney and Bush.
I've had a chance, over the past few months, to get a feel for this. I commissioned a Zogby poll which found that a big majority of Democrats wanted impeachment. I've spoken at local democratic meetings and the support for impeachment is always close to unanimous. Even at the recent Obama unity even, when I asked the 25 people in attendance if they thought Bush and Cheney should be impeached, the response was unanimous.
But Nancy Pelosi won't put impeachment "on the table." And John Conyers has offered some pathetically weak arguments on why he should not hold impeachment hearings, including the shameful argument that it will produce and adverse reaction from the right wing.
The fact is, congress's ratings are at an all time single digit low-- a well deserved rating, primarily due to the hijacking of the Democratic party by it's bluedog wing. These right wing DINOs (Democrats in name only,) led by Stenny Hoyer, have sold out The "Dem" bluedogs have sold out the Democrats who voted for them again and again. Glenn Greenwald has written about what to do about them recently. Let's give "Blue Dogs" the boot
But meanwhile, I think the bluedogs are the reason Nancy Pelosi and John Conyers are refusing to act upon the evidence Dennis Kucinich and all the people who testified in front of the House Judiciary committee last Friday, at the pseudo impeachment hearings.
The brutal fact is, and I do believe it's a fact, impeachment hearings offer the Democrats the best chance they have of not only insuring Obama's victory, but also for taking 60 seats in the senate.
First, I'm talking about hearings. There's no need to rush to a vote in the senate. The successful efforts to dump corrupt White house administration people never reached the senate. Both Spiro Agnew and Richard Nixon were forced to resign because of HEARINGS.
I spoke to John Dean, who was there, and he told me that past impeachments always started with an independent prosecutor-- Archibald Cox for Nixon and Ken Starr for Clinton. Dean told me, on my radio show, that the house judiciary committee doesn't have the resources to do an adequate investigation, which makes the independent prosecutor hearings necessary. So, if Nancy Pelosi won't allow impeachment hearings, at the least, she should be supporting and funding an independent prosecutor, and John Conyers should be speaking out and asking for it.
But let's talk about impeachment hearings for a moment. The beauty of impeachment hearings is that executive privilege is not permitted-- no way, no how. Now, recently, several Bush appointees have engaged in contempt of congress because they refused to respond to subpoenas and appear before committees. They don't have the right to do that. They can appear and then refuse to answer specific questions, using executive privilege, but they are not allowed to just not show up. That said, several Bush administration current and former officials have shown contempt of congress by refusing to obey subpoenas.
But with impeachment hearings, there is no executive privilege, no right to refuse to testify.
I believe that if hearings are held, this summer, they will churn up the sewer of corruption that the White house and its appointees have engaged in. The news media will be unable to avoid covering it. They may even cover it instead of the Olympics.
But the hearings should start in August with the expectation that they will reach full, reeking bloom, with the full stink of rotting sewage, by late September, with the worst revelations, as higher level appointees roll over under pressure, coming out in October. This will make the current bad reputation of the Republican party seem like the good old days. And it will be the death knell for scores of GOP members of congress.
Since the hearings will finally show that the congress is doing its job, protecting the constitution, it will very likely cause a drastic bump in the ratings for the Dems in congress, helping all the incumbents, even the bluedogs, except for the most traitorous ones.
If you want to see the right wingers in congress tossed out, and a strong, effective majority in the senate, tell your congressperson to do his or her job of protecting the constitution. Tell your legislator that if Bush and Cheney are not impeached you won't be satisfied. Contact the house judiciary committee and tell them to get off their asses and do their job.
John Dean told me that Bush can literally pardon himself in advance for any and all offenses. Vince Bugliosi, author of the book, THE PROSECUTION OF GEORGE W. BUSH FOR MURDER, told me that there are close to a thousand federal and state prosecutors who could charge Bush and prosecute him for murder. I don't know who's right, but to me, the solution is to not test the possibilities. It is the perfect time to prosecute Cheney and Bush. At the hearings, former congresswoman Elizabeth Holtzman, who participated in the Nixon impeachment hearings, suggested that it's possible to "do a Twofer" impeaching both Cheney and Bush.
It's time, and its the right, smart thing for the Dems to do.
Rob Kall is executive editor and publisher of OpEdNews.com, President of Futurehealth, Inc, inventor . He is also published regularly on the Huffingtonpost.com and is a columnist with Northstarwriters.com. He is a frequent Speaker on Politics, Impeachment, The art, science and power of story, heroes and the hero's journey, Positive Psychology, Stress, Biofeedback and a wide range of subjects. He is a campaign consultant specializing in tapping the power of stories for issue positioning, stump speeches and debates. He recently retired as organizer of several conferences, including StoryCon, the Summit Meeting on the Art, Science and Application of Story and The Winter Brain Meeting on neurofeedback, biofeedback, Optimal Functioning and Positive Psychology. See more of his articles here and, older ones, here.
To learn more about me and OpEdNews.com, check out this article.
and there are Rob's quotes, here.
To Watch me on youtube, having a lively conversation with John Conyers, Chair of the House Judiciary committee, click here Now, wouldn't you like to see me on the political news shows, representing progressives. If so, tell your favorite shows to bring me on and refer them to this youtube video
My radio show, The Rob Kall Show, runs 9-10 PM EST Wednesday evenings, on AM 1360, WNJC and is archived on www.whiterosesociety.org Or listen to it streaming, live at either www.wnjc1360.com or here.
A few declarations.
-While I'm registered as a Democrat, I consider myself to be a dynamic critic of the Democratic party, just as, well, not quite as much, but almost as much as I am a critic of republicans.
-My articles express my personal opinion, not the opinion of this website.
How does the CONgress hold impeachment hearings with any credibility at all?? Rob, The Democrat Controlled CONgress has a 9% approval rating... The lowest in HISTORY, and that is saying something.
I am thinking that it did not happen, because the Dems in DC know that if they ever did, they would lose entirely too many seats. (of course I am listening if there are other possible explanations...
Ciao, CZ
by
steve scheetz (4 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 734 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 12:58:02 PM
Why is all this blathering bs on impeachment still going on?
Why are so many writers and readers of OEN still yaking away about impeachment?? Don't you have anything more creative and useful to write and talk about??? It was abundantly clear soon after the Dems took control of the house that there would be no serious impeachment effort. ALL OF YOU WHO VOTED FOR THE DEMS ARE TO BLAME; TAKE RESPONSIBILITY. AND REMEMBER YOUR MISTAKE WHEN YOU VOTE FOR PRESIDENT; REMEMBER THAT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO REASON TO BELIEVE THAT OBAMA WILL ACTUALLY DO WHAT IS REALLY NEEDED TO RESTORE AMERICAN DEMOCRACY AND OUR CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC. FEEL GUILTY ALL YOU PROGRESSIVES, LIBERALS AND DEMOCRAPS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Joel S. Hirschhorn (135 articles, 37 quicklinks, 63 diaries, 539 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 5:58:00 PM
All this talk about "believe in change". What change? WHERE'S THE #@$# change? Obama policy. (from his web-site)
1. Increase size of the military.
comment: Just what we DON'T need, more defense spending. Already 50% of our budget.
2. "Re-deploy" troops to Afghanistan.
comment: So they go from one bogus war to another. Big deal. No change. Still spending money we don't have on wars we don't need. Risking our soldiers lives for oil and Israel.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
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Roger Thomas (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 81 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 2:19:34 PM
Rob, I agree that impeachment and removal would help the Democrats gain control of Congress. What about Bush's crimes being prosecuted under the criminal statutes after he leaves office?
I understand that he can't be prosecuted for what he did as a part of his presidential duties, but if you look at the Constitutional list of presidential duties and then look at what Bush did, it's obvious that very little, if anything he did, falls into the area of presidential duties. Maybe you could ask John Dean about that.
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Ed Martin (124 articles, 0 quicklinks, 35 diaries, 146 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 3:13:37 PM
You're blurring the line between 2 different things.
There is indeed some connection between winning in November & impeaching. Despite this, the 2 things are entirely different in terms of what might motivate them, & what attitudes citizens should take towards them.
The main connection between the 2 is (as you're basically saying) that IF (in some hypothetical dream world) the Democrats would impeach, they'd probably win by a landslide. They'd be thanked & appropriately rewarded by a grateful relieved public for finally doing their job.
However, realistically speaking, they will probably win anyway, because 1) the Bush regime is so widely hated; 2) McCain is a pathetically weak candidate; & 3) the Big Money guys are behind Obama. Even if they don't lift a finger towards impeachment, this will be easily enough for the D's to win.
Also in the real world, there is zero chance that the gutless unprincipled Democrats in Congress will lift a finger towards impeachment.
The Dems shouldn't impeach because it would help them win (although it would). They should do it because otherwise, they are allowing all the Bush precedents to stand without challenge -- which sets in concrete the torture, signing statements, lying us into war, fantastic levels of corruption & cronyism, spying on citizens, mass murder in Iraq, etc etc. It officially makes us a gangster state in which the president can flaunt the Constitution with impunity.
If the Democrats won't move to impeach that, they deserve a far, far worse fate than merely losing an election.
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Richard Mynick (2 articles, 3 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 1293 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 3:19:22 PM
The blanket claims of executive privilege the White House seems determined to assert provide Congress with the perfect rationale for pursuing impeachment. There apparently is no other way to compel these people to testify.
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Gregg Gordon (26 articles, 47 quicklinks, 15 diaries, 199 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 3:37:31 PM
.. and the essential first step in implementing change.
Here is a helpful resource, the original testimonies of each witness, from both panels, at the Judiciary Committee Hearing, posted yesterday on the Judiciary website: http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/hear_072508.html
Elizabeth Holtzman's is particularly helpful and it did not appear among the earlier lists around the web for some reason. Brief excerpt, under "Systematic Refusal to Obey the Law":
The first abuse of power has to do with the systematic refusal to obey the law. One of the key constitutional responsibilities of a president, as set forth in the constitution, is to implement the laws. The framers use an elegant term for this: a president must, in their words, “take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” The responsibility is so serious that it is phrased almost redundantly: a president must “take care” and “faithfully” execute.
The principle is instilled in all of us as school children, where we learn at an early age that the Congress makes the laws and the president carries them out.
There are a number of "reasons" being used, perhaps some of them are actually sincere, and some of those more sincere ones are likely as Rob is saying here, to be very related to the "BlueDogDinos". We surely DO need to be rid of those characters! I don't understand why they haven't been voted out yet! There is nothing about them that I can relate to as "Democrat". They are unprincipled corpratist elitist types and have no compunction that I have ever seen to do anything but follow their own neoLibcon ideology, keep lining their pockets and exerting manipulative control mechanisms.
I see BlueDogs as neocons in Dem clothing, and a holdover from smoke filled back room under the table wheeler dealering days who want to hold us all back there with them so they can continue that system; subverting the will of WeThePeople, preventing the greater good because that's not a bottom line thing, not profitable, and would free us, as seen in their book, of being mere tools of consumerist greed and reckless overconsumption-- which IS "profitable". They rake in the corporate bucks shamelessly, then set themselves up as the bankers of 'the party' to keep everyone in kowtowing line with their hands out. They like the position of being "The Ones" who must be appeased.
I'm afraid the over-riding thing here, though, is much more sinister. It is relatively easy to keep it hidden because nobody will speak anything of it in public, and anyone who has heard of any of it cannot name them, so there's no fact-check, no credibility certifying so its brushed off and dissed away.
I have heard of, (and actually HEARD one, caught on video but remaining annonymous), 3 different Reps. who said that they do not move toward impeachment or getting out of Iraq or any other really 'sensitive subjects' because Dick Cheney has announced to them that if they do, 5 or 6 major US cities will then be false-flagged with nuclear bombs. There's another such thing that has leaked up and out here and there without any attribution, but coming from different places, times and directions: that they have been convinced that all is hopelessly lost already and therefore they are dependent on the whims of the NWO/neocon "cabal" for the safety of themselves and their families. This is referred to as "a ticket underground". There is ONE, though, another version, but along the same line that is on video and therefore verifiable:
I would say, that without IMMEDIATE impeachment, we're all cooked already anyway, that impeachment is the only route open to us to STOP this madness from its devastation of ALL. One must decide that the dire threats attributed to Cheney are a moot point, anyway. What harm they might do flying false flags, bombing Iran, or whatever, we must save us from worse by risking it. Move en-masse in a surround of Congress in session and don't let them out until impeachment is done.
I think there's also a need for a constitutional ammendment that will give us an avenue of recourse in such an unprecidented situation as this-- When pres and veep are such heinous criminals, they need to be able to be locked up and prosecuted even while in office. I have no idea how that would have to be worked out, but this bunch of criminals have shown us there is such a need. (-:G
by
G Achin (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 3 diaries, 87 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 4:47:28 PM
Impechment Hearings Would Bring More Dems Into Congress
Pelosi's statement, in short terms, was pure B.S. During the non-impeachment hearing(s), there were several crimes articulated that easily would qualify as impeachable offenses, and Pelosi and Conyers’ are perfectly aware of this fact.
The bottom-line is that Nancy Pelosi was part of the "Gang of Eight" and she was briefed on our illegal torture procedures, and because the President stated it was "classified", she chose to remain silent and therefore became a criminal enabler of their policies. Pelosi won't allow impeachment because the hearings would likely implicate her and several other members of Congress. This is simply a matter of CYA and adhering to AIPAC's will and has nothing to do whether or not Bush committed "high crimes and misdemeanors – plus treason."
If Barrack Obama has been going along with the crowd, so to speak, to make sure he is elected, and then follows-up as he has promised to do in regard the alleged crimes of the Bush Administration, Pelosi and several other Democrats will go down as well - and if they deserve it, then I am in favor of prosecuting anyone, regardless of their political affiliation, for crimes perpetrated against the American people.
She fired off another lame excuse a couple of weeks ago and stated that she was against impeachment because she was "Bipartisan..." WTF? What does being bipartisan have to do with prosecuting an individual for crimes they committed against the American people and the global community? If the President and Vice-President of the United States refuse to uphold our laws, and if you believe in leadership by example, then why should the average American obey our laws when the Commander in Chief refuses to do so himself? This is the most ridiculous set of circumstances I have ever witnessed in my entire lifetime, and it's more than obvious that Bush and Cheney cannot be impeached because they would take-down so many Congressmen/women along with them that none dare to impeach for fear of their own careers.
I have always maintained that if the people themselves could sponsor a Bill that gives most of Congress immunity and refuse to release information that was illegally gathered through wiretaps and spying on our own Congress, Bush and Cheney would be history in a matter of weeks. If we look at the "big picture", it is far better for the country to grant immunity to the multitude of Congress that have been ensnared by illegal surveillance methods than it is to leave a criminal President and VP in power. I'll admit it makes me sick to think that so many who are culpable in this conspiracy would walk, but for the greater good, it would pay-off in spades and help to save liberty and freedom in our nation.
Justice Department attorneys have actually developed a code when they speak on the phone because they know they are being illegally wiretapped, and some actually fear for their lives - and this is a police-state that has to be broken, no matter what the consequences are. There are certain players that could never get immunity, such as Rove, Bolton, and the high-flying architects of this coup, but lets face it, if we lose a few to get rid of Bush and Cheney before they can damage us even more, it would be well worth allowing some of them to escape prosecution for the betterment of the whole – meaning the bulk of the U.S. and the global community.
This entire fiasco falls under the RICO statutes, and all that is needed is a secret prosecutor, which Congress has the ability to appoint, and then it can be prosecuted under our rule of law, and RICO is made in heaven to bring this house of cards down, and in a manner where the public will be well-informed of "why" impeachment is a necessity rather than something they may or may not want to do. The law is the law, and under RICO, the amount of corrupt Congressmen and members of the Executive branch would fall, and their fall would be monumental and breathe new life into a nation that has done nothing except to enable criminals who are hell-bent on destroying the American way of life.
Please Congress, wake-up and the people will protect you if you protect us from Bush and Cheney. It's easy to see the benefits of following our own law, and no matter who the next President is, "the people" will come out ahead, and might even stave off war with Iran, among other things. We know the Bush administration is blackmailing Congress, so immunity for all but the key players would make sense and break the deadlock in regard impeachment.
Most people are unaware that Dick Cheney’s “shadow government” is operating because we are still under a state of emergency after 911; it is imperative that we break this deadlock and bring the rule of law and sanity back into our Congress and restore our system of checks and balances; if we fail, we will be electing another King and not a President, and in order to maintain what our constitution embodies, it’s necessary to use the full spectrum of our laws and procedures to get the United States back on a course of democracy and freedom.
So far Obama has made many of the right moves, but if he is elected to what is an “imperial Presidency", we will again be dealing with an executive that can ignore the rule of law, and even worse, could legitimately ignore our constitution and international law, much as Bush has done for the past seven and a half years, Enough is enough! Our economy is close to utter collapse, but Impeaching Bush and Cheney would breathe new life into the value of the dollar, gas and food costs would be reduced significantly, and with a little luck and an enormous amount of work, impeachment is the best bet on saving an economy that right now, is destined to fail. We have the ability to save America, and that can only be accomplished by impeaching Bush, Cheney, and prosecuting those who have blatantly ignored our constitution and the rule of law. Imagine how fast the United States would; again be respected and viewed as the premier democracy in the world instead of becoming a target for several nations that now look upon us as an aggressor and are rapidly making plans to usher in the downfall of what used to be the strongest and most respected superpower in the world. Our future hinges on impeachment, and Americans had better wake-up to that fact unless they are ready to lose everything we have fought and died for over the past 200 years. Yes, it’s that serious.
William Cormier
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William Cormier (133 articles, 7 quicklinks, 18 diaries, 336 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 6:18:39 PM
The disgusting policies of the Bush administration are an affront to anyone who cares about our republic. This pattern has emerged since WWII when the U.S. replaced Great Britian as the leading colonial/imperial power. Bush and company have just taken it to its 'logical conclusion' (also known as fascism).
So many democrats are still corporatists that it's impossible to have justice served - ask Dennis Kucinich. Which raises the question of whether we even want the return of Pelosi, Ried and the like.
As with every major shift in policy in the history of the world, it will take more than votes and protests. The incumbents and elitists have the game rigged
It will take massive, targeted resistance to create 'regime change' in this country. We can't do it from the sidelines. And it can't come soon enough.
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Jim Prues (15 articles, 33 quicklinks, 10 diaries, 77 comments)
on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 7:00:00 PM
And WHY, exactly, would we even want Dems to win...
If the only reason they could be compelled to do the right thing and FINALLY impeach this immoral and corrupt administration would be if they actually believed their seats were threatened???? They ran for their offices on the pretense of getting us out of this war and impeachment. They lied. They have sold us out wholesale and continue to do so daily.
Over on BradBlog there is a video of Pelosi on The View... I about fell out of my seat when she was introduced as speaker she actually said "it's a very important job, you have President, Vice-President, then Speaker of the House"... whoa Nancy, like you said... IT IS A VERY IMPORTANT JOB !!! Maybe you get over your self-adulation and accomplish something really democratic. That you got minimum wage raised is now rather moot since the cost of living has effectively quadrupled, and all your health care talk is just that because it was all for deepening the coffers of Big Pharm to the detriment of the American citizens once again.
I'm thinking it would be a great thing if Congress couldn't accomplish anything due to impeachment proceedings. At least no more damage could be done. The Republicans and the Democrats have shown their colors. I am certain the Democrats love the idea being floated that there is some sort of threat being held over their heads to make them compliant, but it doesn't square. What does square is they are every bit as complicit at the Republicans in an anti-american power grab. Sure, the next President could straghten this mess out, but where's the incentive.
The only solution to this mess is take them by total surprise, if possible, and vote all the s.o.b.'s out. Nader, like Kucinich, has always had what's right and best all around for America and the world in mind. Vote in the Independents and the Greens. 86 the Democrats and Republicans.\
You listen to the media and you think there are only two parties in this race. They would like to believe that were true. Hit them where it hurts. They're both no good and have proven so.
by
bucketslogg (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 101 comments)
on Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 9:04:28 PM
Hmmm...it seems that Pelosi and her co-conspirators would rather lose this 'war' with Bush than to lose the next election. Sound familiar? Nan, Stenny, Harry and the whole damned lot of Congressional "leaders" deserve to be tarred, feathered, and run out of town on a rail.
They keep telling us that the answer to all America's problems is to "elect more Democrats". Electing more Democrats who vote like Republicans, while aiding and abetting the Republicans in their crimes against We The People, strikes me as ridiculous. What would be the point?
Until we have a viable opposition party, we seem to be stuck with this "bi-partisan" corruption; but everybody is afraid to vote for a 3rd-party candidate lest the Greater Evil Republicans beat out the (somewhat) Lesser Evil Democrats. These two major parties are the Problem...not the Solution! Until they are gone we'll never have a Congress--or a Presidency--that represents Us.
The "Let the People Be Damned" attitude in D.C. is pervasive. We've got a "President" who ignores The People....and we've got a "Congress" that shuts its eyes and ears to the Popular Will. Bush's continuing war in Iraq and Pelosi's refusal to impeach these criminals ought to be proof enough of the disconnect between We The People and the Mob who operate "our" government.
Sooner or later, we're gonna have to bite the bullet and support a genuine Opposition Party....even at the risk (probability) of electing another stinkin' Republican. Anyone who thinks the Democrats (even under an Obama regime) are going to "fix" this broken-down government and the moribund "democracy" that sustains it, needs to have his/her head examined.
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Bill Tower (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 34 comments)
on Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 9:53:59 PM
Nancy Pelosi Said 9 More Democrats Needed in Senate
On 07/20/08, Pelosi was explaining on the Colbert Report that the Republicans always vote in a block and nine more Democratic Senators are needed to get past the Republicans
Do the Republicans have something on Pelosi?
by
Laura Kay (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 35 comments)
on Friday, August 1, 2008 at 3:20:48 AM
14 comments
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