( – promoted by buhdydharma )
And misleading our country into war
Abusing all the power that we gave him
And shipping all our money out the doorNeil Young
On Monday of this week Rep. Dennis Kucinich introduced 35 articles of impeachment. On Wednesday it finally was acknowledged by CNN. In fact it was, for a time, the third most popular story right after Incest girl reunited with family and ‘Idol’ runner-up lands record deal.
Unbelievably there are still Democrats arguing against impeachment of the worst criminals in American history. Their reasons vary but are all equally stupid.
We have more important things to do. No we don’t. The egregious violations of national and international law that we have seen from this administration cry out for justice. The simple and unavoidable fact is that we owe this much to the rest of the world.
Sweeping such horrendous behavior under the rug is a recipe for disaster. We should have learned that lesson by the pardoning of Richard Nixon and how that led inexorably to the devastating George W. Bush administration, which has done significantly more harm to America than any enemy domestic or foreign in all of U.S. history.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly said she would not support a resolution calling for Bush’s impeachment, saying such a move was unlikely to succeed and would be divisive.
Divisive? Of course none of the Bushco crimes have been divisive, eh Nancy?
Obama must learn from Kucinich’s election theft impeachment
by Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
June 11, 2008Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) has introduced 35 articles of impeachment against George W. Bush. Two of the articles deal with the fact that Bush was never elected, and in fact stole the election of 2004 in Ohio. They should serve as a cautionary notice to the Obama campaign that this year’s election could also be stolen.
Kucinich’s courage in introducing these articles is underscored by the fact that the Congress should have removed Bush from office years ago. From lying to the world to perpetrate the war in Iraq, to violating the Constitution on scores of basic civil rights and liberties issues, to fostering a regime based on unprecedented corruption and robbery, George W. Bush would be known as the worst president in the history of the United States if in fact he had been elected president.
But these articles of impeachment contain charges that come directly from the independent reportage on the stolen 2004 election that appeared first at www.freepress.org and in other non-corporate and internet-based media throughout the United States. Ironically, though these facts have finally penetrated to a proposed Congressional indictment of the nation’s chief executive, they have yet to be reported in the “mainstream” corporate-owned media.
Kucinich’s Article 28 charges Bush with “tampering with free and fair elections,” along with “corruption of the administration of justice.” Article 29 charges him and his staff and political cronies and underlings with “conspiracy to violate the Civil Rights Act of 1965” (co-author Bob Fitrakis, attorney-at-law, helped draft these Articles 28 and 29 based in part on information that was first posted at www.freepress.org).
In the past couple of days I’ve heard people say there is insufficient evidence of crimes or impeachable offenses. Come on. After what Bushco has put us all through, no one without their head firmly lodged in an inconvenient orifice could possibly believe that. These guys have looted America and Iraq and have committed terrible, unspeakable crimes in the process. They are as guilty as they can be (I know that in our system they are technically innocent until proven guilty – but you all know I’m right.) I’m no lawyer, and I’m certainly no prosecutor, but give me the google and one hour to prepare and I could send Bush and Cheney to a well-deserved life in prison in no time flat. I guarantee.
What Nixon did was child’s play by comparison but we let him be pardoned by that no count Gerald Ford. It was a terrible mistake. We let Reagan slide on Contra-gate and Ayatollah-gate – both horrendous mistakes that led us to where we are today. So do we learn our lessons and clamp down on lawlessness in the executive branch, or just go ahead and make it official that the President can do any damn thing he wants – and all laws and international treaties be damned?
We do NOT want to set that precedent.
But what if he’s acquitted some have said. Well let’s just not ever do anything because it might not work. Besides, once the evidence begins to pile up in the public square where everyone from whom it has been hidden by the MSM can see it clearly and plainly, and smell it’s terrible odor for themselves, the repubs will be peeling off likes rats abandoning a sinking ship – just like they did during Watergate. They will not be able to stand before the American public and defend lying us into war, looting the treasury and ordering people tortured, raped and murdered. Won’t happen…not once the evidence is out there for everybody to see.
I’ve heard people say we don’t want to look vengeful. Let’s swear off the mind-numbing timidity and the pathetic self-consciousness. It’s not about how we look – it’s about whether or not we have the moral courage and common decency to do the right thing.
Did the Republicans worry about how they looked when they impeached Clinton for a bj? No, they just forged ahead even though they were dead wrong. So now we’re afraid to forge ahead – even though we’re right? This is insanity. This is right wing hogwash. We should all be very wary of people pushing these memes (IMO). There are snakes in the grass.
Bushco has broken our government, pissed on our Constitution, mortgaged our children’s future and stolen our money. The only fix is to bring the criminals to justice and recoup our losses by taking the money back. If we don’t do that, we deserve what we get.
Obama Florida Co-Chair Signs On to Bush Impeachment
June 10, 2008 10:57 PMCongressman Robert Wexler, D-Fla. — the Florida co-chair for the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. — today announced that he has signed on to support the Articles of Impeachment against President George W. Bush, introduced this week by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio.
“President Bush deliberately created a massive propaganda campaign to sell the war in Iraq to the American people and the charges detailed in this impeachment resolution indicate an unprecedented abuse of executive power,” Wexler said. “A decision by Congress to pursue impeachment is not an option, it is a sworn duty. It is time for Congress to stand up and defend the Constitution against the blatant violations and illegalities of this Administration. Our Founding Fathers bestowed upon Congress the power of impeachment, and it is now time that we use it to defend the rule of law from this corrupt Administration.”
The only thing that could make me stop screaming for impeachment at the top of my lungs is the actual arrest, detention and charging of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney (at a minimum) with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
In my opinion, every Republican OR Democrat who has argued against or worked against the impeachment of these criminal bastards are traitors to the American people. May they all get what they so richly deserve.
Amen.
“You know, it is very important. The fact is, that this is not supposed to happen the way it’s happened in the last seven years. The framers, I think, would have been astonished by the absolute passivity, if not the collusion of the Democrats in protecting President Bush from impeachment. I mean, they created a system that was essentially idiot-proof, and God knows we’ve put that to the test in the past few years, but I don’t think they anticipated that so many members of the opposition would stand quietly in the face of clear presidential crimes.”
Jonathon Turley, Constitutional Law Professor on Countdown with Keith Olberman last night
Thank you Neil Young. Thank you Congressman Wexler.
And THANK YOU Dennis Kucinich!
Sign the petition supporting Dennis and his articles of impeachment.
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And the Democratic Congress is ignoring them as well.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see him ‘reach across the aisle’ and compromise to do nothing.
Keep pounding away.
“But what about . . . ,” I would scroll down some more in your diary and you would say it, OPOL. We’re on the same page (big surprise).
Good for Dennis. As everyone probably already knows, the idea of a Department of Peace dates from the 18th century at least.
Who are the people with the sign that says, “Impeach the entire administration”?
yesterday. the public editor is the “readers’ representative”
i asked why i could find no reference to a U.S. Congressman bringing articles of impeachment to the floor of the Congress… how is this NOT news worthy???
that the NY Times has nary a word is what is news worthy. astounding. i mean it is mind-blowing. and in one shot, sums up the whole fucked up 7 plus years.
btw… no story i could find this morning in the NY Times either. haven’t checked since.
now. does anybody want to talk about most of the Democrats in congress? are they democrats the same way the liberal media is the liberal media?
are we starting to get it yet???
we need a third party… the internet… it is doable.
And fwiw, last night on Countdown, one of the guests (Milbank maybe) said Obama wants nothing to do with impeachment because he is hoping to win some votes from Bush-loving Republicans. Apparently, Wexler is his proxy. Stupendously disappointing, imo. It seems like supporting impeachment would get votes from independents and maybe even Repugs. But that’s just my personal, wild-eyed liberal take.
to make sure this arrived in every inbox in the United States.
Anyone who objects to impeachment is simply not thinking clearly. There is no other appropriate end to these eight years of criminality.
Opol, I will forward this to many people. Love the graphic with the Goddess of Justice, the Bill of Rights and Earth.
I suggest only one possible change, 2nd to last graphic:
I would add a fourth line:
“Until fascism makes the expression of wrath impossible.”
Thank you, Opol!
Great graphic with Lady Justice.
Maybe you could add Jonathan Turley`s statement from Countdown last night. If you haven`t seen it, you should give it a look-see.
It is extremely appropriate
Turley: “You know, it is very important. The fact is, that this is not supposed to happen the way it’s happened in the last seven years. The framers, I think, would have been astonished by the absolute passivity, if not the collusion of the Democrats in protecting President Bush from impeachment. I mean, they created a system that was essentially idiot-proof, and God knows we’ve put that to the test in the past few years, but I don’t think they anticipated that so many members of the opposition would stand quietly in the face of clear presidential crimes.”
Arrest to punish crime.
[I just posted this on dkos. I realize that it’s preaching to the choir here, but perhaps seeing this take will prove useful.]
For those who think impeachment is for criminality, and are unsure if Bush is guilty enough, the argument for impeachment is much stronger than you think. Impeachment is a response to a breakdown in constitutional government. It is the method by which we fix our government.
Please consider the following list, which I will compose off the top of my head. Think of these issues, not in terms of criminality, or need to prove cause; rather consider whether they are an indicator that your government is failing to operate as the framers envisioned. For impeachment, we are unconcerned whether Bush is unlucky, incompetent, an evil genius, or the jokester next door who is lovable once you get to know him. WE DON’T CARE. We need a government that works. Read this list and then tell me our government is working the way it was intended.
1. The identity of a covert operative was exposed during time of war from somewhere high in the executive branch.
2. Our country went to war on the basis of either incompetent intelligence or willful deception. Take our pick–in either case, the government is not working.
3. Leaders at the highest level have lied to the American people repeatedly on a wide range of issues, for partisan rather than security reasons.
4. Officers of the government have spied on Americans illegally with involvement from the highest levels of the executive.
5. Officers of the government engaged in organized torture and subsequent illegal cover-up. These practices were planned at the highest levels.
6. Officers of the government illegally paid former military officers to appear as unbiased experts on news programs in order to affect public opinion in favor of their policies.
7. Officers of the government illegally engaged in partisan political activity on government property, during normal work hours, with government employees.
8. Officials of the government have illegally ignored subpoenas the Congress.
9. Officials of the government have been in consistent violation of the Presidential Records Act.
I’m getting bored with this. Does this look as though George W. Bush is taking care that the law be faithfully executed? That’s the only question. Can you read that list (we can make it much, much longer) and tell me that Bush is taking care of the law?
Aside from war crimes, economic crimes, etc., we need to re-establish an executive branch committed to executing the law. Otherwise, the word “we” has no meaning in this discussion. We the people will have ceded control of the government.
The oath of office:
Point 1
execute (DO)
verb [T]
to do or perform (something), esp. in a planned way
execute (KILL)
verb [T]
to kill (someone) as a legal punishment
Reminder 1 and Reminder 2.
Or just go here and take yer pick.
It’s therefore quite plausible he didn’t understand the distinction between those two definitions of “execute” and went with what he thought it meant. And that’s what he did.
Point 2
“…to the best of my ability…”
Case closed.
Unfortunately, as with the Cheney Articles of Impeachment, the Bush Articles of Impeachment are being referred to the House Judiciary, as well.
Dennis Kucinich vows to continue the fight, though!
The only thing I have in me right now is an execration of sentiment.
We need to vote OUT every single Democrat that has let us down, if we’re lucky enough to have that opportunity.
THIS WHOLE SITUATION REEKS TO HIGH HEAVEN! Hard to control my anger right now!
and impeachment is only justice…but the system is so crapped up with money and self-serving politicians that NOTHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN. Sad to realize this but makes you do more productive things with time. That thing in DC is DONE. They are BEYOND RECOVERY. It is a FALLING EMPIRE.
Best thing to do in that situation is LOOK TO YOUR OWN INTERESTS, your family, friends, local community. Relocate somewhere more sustainable while you can, where you can join others in growing local crops, making biodiesel, solar power off the grid, etc. Things are going to get bad as the dollar passes the peso on the way down and oil exporting countries stop exporting. And the wars will go on until there aren’t any fuel tankers full enough left to fill the jets.