Michael Collins: The People, the Press, and the Case for Impeachment

The People, the Press, and the Case for Impeachment

Support for impeachment in the past and on the hearing date. MSNBC, Zogby

House Justice Committee Hears Kucinich Resolution - Part 2

"When our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence they were not worried about political will, how much time there was, or about any parties' political future, they were just worried they were going to be hanged by the neck. But they did what was right. Now it is your time."
Elliott Adams, President, Veterans for Peace, testimony July 25, 2008

Michael Collins
Washington, DC (See Part 1)

The July 25, 2008 House Committee on the Judiciary hearings focused on the Kucinich resolution calling for the impeachment of President Bush. In his resolution, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) argues that Bush knew that the Iraqis had no weapons of mass destruction, yet claimed that they did in order to justify the March 2003 invasion. The "fraudulent misrepresentations," as they're referred to in the resolution, cost lives, compromised national security, and represented a clear abuse of constitutional power. The evidence supporting these claims is highly persuasive.

Congressional witnesses review their critique of the president. Representatives Kucinich (D-OH), Hinchey (D-NY), Miller (D-NC), and Jones (R-NC) Image: M. Collins cc

For the most part, the witness statements from House members and the panel of invited witnesses contain specific justifications for impeachment. The Kucinich resolution for impeachment, H. Res 1345, offers a concentrated body of evidence substantiating the charges and demonstrates the main charge in the resolution: the president knew that he was misrepresenting the facts about Iraq at the time he was doing it.

In the resolution, Rep. Kucinich lists corrections for each of the false assertions made by the president to justify the Iraq invasion. In addition, the resolution provides excerpted evidence and sources to support each correction of the president's fabricated rationale.

The statements in single quotes in the Kucinich resolution text below are from the president's justifications for war. From the resolution:

1. Iraq was not 'continuing to possess and develop a significant chemical and biological weapons capability.'
2. Iraq was not 'actively seeking a nuclear weapons capability.'
3. Iraq was not 'continuing to threaten the national security interests of the United States.'
4. Iraq did not have the 'willingness to attack, the United States.'
5. Iraq had no connection with the attacks of 9/11 or with al-Qaida's role in 9/11.
6. Iraq possessed no weapons of mass destruction to transfer to anyone.
7. Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction and therefore had no capability of launching a surprise attack against the United States or its Armed Forces or to provide them to international terrorists who would do so.
8. There was not a real risk of an 'extreme magnitude of harm that would result to the United States and its citizens from such an attack' because Iraq had no capability of attacking the United States.
9. The aforementioned evidence did not 'justify the use of force by the United States to defend itself' because Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction, or have the intention or capability of using the nonexistent WMDs against the United States.
10. Since there was no threat posed by Iraq to the United States, the enactment clause of the Senate Joint Resolution 45 was predicated on misstatements to Congress. H. Res. 1345 (alternate link)

The facts from that time don't come close to justifying the use of force. As demonstrated in the resolution, the president's case for war was based on "fraudulent representations made to Congress," the military, and the citizens of the United States.

See the draft of H. Res. 1345 at AfterDowingStreet.Org for direct links to the primary sources used in the resolution. The Library of Congress (THOMAS)alternate site have the official versions of the resolution, modified somewhat from the draft. and this

This information and more has been known for years to many citizens, particularly those who actively work for the impeachment of Bush and Cheney. Hundreds of them waited hours to get a seat in the public hearing which accommodated less than twenty of those who had waited in line.

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