US citizenship is a precious gift, making a person one of "We the People", with sovereignty, the right to self-rule. Our Founding Fathers (and mothers) fought a bloody revolution to secure this right. The US was the FIRST country in modern times to replace monarchy or oligarchy- rule by kings and nobles- with democracy- rule of the people. The US Constitution is a holy document, establishing our right to rule ourselves and determine the direction of our country.
The US is not a direct democracy, but rather a representative democracy. We the People are represented by Congress, especially by the House, whose members have to account to us at the polls every two years.
When the Constitution was first written, citizenship was mostly limited to white males. The Fourteenth Amendment changed that.
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. - XIV Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
Naturalized citizens have to swear to uphold and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. It's assumed that those fortunate enough to be born in the land of the free will also treasure and fight for the precious document that guarantees our freedom. All holders of public office, at all levels- city, state, county,- even all who simply run for public office, must take the same oath. Defending the Constitution is the basic duty of all citizens.
Oath of Allegiance for Naturalized Citizens "I hereby declare, on oath, ... that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same;...and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."
We all are aware by now that Bush and Cheney have been systematically shredding the Constitution- Bush called it "just a goddam piece of paper" and doing their best to restore the monarchy. They are the greatest domestic enemies that the Constitution has ever known. It is our duty as citizens to uphold and defend it
. "Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men
(and women), undergo the fatigue of supporting it." -- Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777 - during the Revolutionary War.
The Constitution gives us a means for dealing with its domestic enemies:
Article II, Section 4:
The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
Impeachment takes place in the House of Representatives. It is the duty of every Representative to uphold his/her oath of office, defend the Constitution, and open an investigation into whether the many lies, scandals, abuses of executive privilege that are coming to light are, in fact, impeachable offenses.
There were two bills introduced in the 109th Congress ordering such an investigation- by John Conyers in 2005, and Cynthia McKinney in 2006. They languished in the Republican - controlled 109th, and never got implemented.
The 110th Congress is controlled by Democrats, both Houses, and was given a sweeping mandate by the voters to curb the Bush administration and get the US out of Iraq. Impeachment is the only way to achieve both these goals.
The House of Representatives has done neither, and shamefully, there are no bills calling for impeachment. The Democratic leadership is keeping it "off the table". They are not doing what they were elected to do. They are not representing us, "We the People". They are allowing King George to consolidate his sovereignty, by not holding him accountable for his crimes against the Constitution. They are conducting a mock fight with him over Iraq, while giving him all the funds he needs, as well as carte blanche to attack Iran.
What do we, citizens who love our freedom and are ready to fight for our right to self-rule, do when our Representatives won't represent us? What recourse do we have?
First of all, we need to obey the Constitution ourselves, and work through the routes laid down there. This means working on our Representatives. There are sit-ins going on in Congressional offices all over the country, and Congresspeople are being deluged with phone calls and emails calling for impeachment. We the People are mobilizing.
The ultimate accountability of Congress is at the polls every two years. Rather than being spectators to the drama of the 2008 presidential election, we need to be focusing on the Congressional election. We need to get the message to every Rep that they will be voted out if they don't work on impeachment.
Do you care about women's rights? Peace? The environment? Civil liberties? Education? Health care? Whatever your issue, we need to get rid of Bush and Cheney before we'll make any progress.
We as citizens need to ensure that impeachment happens soon. We need to unite under the impeachment umbrella, rid the government of the Constitution's enemies, and restore the balance of powers which it mandates.
This means coalition building among all the single issue organizations that are now lobbying on Iraq, global warming, species preservation, etc. We must all focus together on impeachment, and demand that our Congresspeople get Bush and Cheney out of office. The current investigations are bringing more and more dirt to light- it will be easy, once impeachment gets started.
For a review of impeachable offenses committed by Bush and Cheney, visit www.impeachBush-Cheney.com You can order a video there, called "High Crimes", which is a great organizing tool. Use it for house parties and get a neighborhood group going. Lobby, sit-in, write to your editors, call into radio shows, hold events, network with other groups- there are lots of ideas and tools at this website, at www.afterdowningstreet.org, and lots of others.
Impeachment is peaceful, legal and democratic.
Be an active citizen- for the sake of our freedom, our children, our planet. May the Force be with us! |
