Proposal: A New Net-wide Petition Drive…Targeting Bushco…..HELP!!!

HELP!!!

A madman has ruined our country and helped set the world on fire!!!

Photobucket

He has committed War Crimes, domestic crimes, and crimes against humanity. And now he is about to retire to his ranch and drink himself to death. With no meaningful consequence and setting a precedent for Presidential Criminality that cannot be allowed to stand.

HELP!!!

The Netroots helped elect Obama and give Democrats a near Supermajority (pending the outcome of the Georgia and Minnesota pennant Senate races) and now is floundering about looking for something to coordinate on to flex it’s now even stronger muscles!!!

HELP!!! I am going through a personal transition (nearly over) and my brain is not fully functional yet, but there is IMPORTANT WORK TO BE DONE!!!

Photobucket

What I am going to describe below is  a model of a whole hog effort. An all out push using all of our skillz and energy and creativity. We will scale back if needed, we will expand if possible!

And this is just my preliminary thoughts, I am sure to miss somethong , so please chime in. I do not want this to be my project, or even just a Docudharma project, though I certainly think we have the skillz and smarts here to do it. What I am going to roughly outline below is basically an ad campaign.

Much as with the Maddow Movement, which helped influence the network suits to give Rachel Maddow her own show, a netwide petition on What To Do With Bushco posted throughout the blogosphere and at Change.gov, as well as being sent to prominent and influential decision makers, WILL influence how the new Attorney General and the Obama Administration deals with the criminals and conspirators that have occupied the White House for the past eight years.

Whatever your personal opinion on how to approach this unique and ugly problem is, I think we can all agree that SOMETHING has to be done before we can truly move forward as a nation. To that end, let us start to discuss and prepare a draft for submission.

This is an ambitious project, if done correctly. As I say above, I am not yet fully recovered from my latest transition and in any case could not do this alone anyway. I need …………….wait for it………..HELP!!! I can tell you from my experience on the Maddow Movement that just posting at the relatively few blogs that I targeted there was a ton of work and took big chunks of time. And we need this effort to be even bigger. Many hands make light work, and there is a lot of work to be done, from assembling a succinct case against King George to coming up with a good draft to posting it far and wide. So let’s start the preliminaries now. We want this to succeed and so it must be as polished and professional as possible.

Here is what we need:

A name for the project. Not just as  catchy advertising, bit also a name under which to post at the various venues we wish to reach. Buhdydhama may still have some cachet and influence at Dkos, but not elsewhere in the blogosphere. This needs to be bigger than me and very well done.



A three paragraph (approx) list of the most heinous and prosecutable crimes of George Bush and his horrible henchbeasts with links to further in depth info. Short and sweet but with plenty o punch!

A heartfelt poignant plea/argument for action. Again short and pithy.

Graphics! Headers, logos, illustrations, graphs etc.

Assembly and presentation into an easily “transportable” document that can work on every web platform and application.

Coordination and outreach. We will want at a minimum for other blogs to post a logo or graphic directing folks to the petition on a relatively long term basis. That means contacting and coordinating with them. Especially if you know other blog owners who would be willing to at least give us space, please speak up! Should we also think about coordinating with folks like After Downing St. and [Ralph Lopez? https://www.docudharma.com/show…

A list of such blogs and venues, and volunteers to post and monitor at those blogs. A list of influential people and how to reach them.

And finally…if we really want to do this right….money for advertising the petition.

Ok, so I woke up and started writing about this…even as I have written, lol, it has gone through changes. It is time to publish and see what you guys think. The first hurdle of course, is what to ask for A Truth Commission? Impeachment? The Hague? We need phrasing that covers all possibilities….imo, we are basically asking for justice, not a specific outcome. But as always it is up to US. Ain’t nobody else gonna do it!

Pardon the scattered nature of this piece pleeeeze! My mind is aswirl with the infinite possibiltities and happentracks and such now that it has been invaded by the idea, iow…..HELP!!!

55 comments

Skip to comment form

  1. If we build it, will they come?

    Photobucket

    • Edger on December 2, 2008 at 20:09

    Can we arrest bush and cheney now?

    I’d kind of like to see a SWAT team of Iraq vets storm the white house and drag them out in chains. By their ankles. Down the stairs. With their heads going thump, thump, thump all the way. And then drag them up the road to the Capital, thump, thump, thump up the stairs, then down into the basement. Read them their Miranda rights. The ones they didn’t think were good enough for anyone else.

    Give them a habeas hearing.

    Then shackle them to the wall. Close the door. Throw the key away.

    And maybe pump the air out?

    Hunh? What?!?!?!?

    Oh. Sorry. I must of dozed off. What a cool  dream I had…

  2. It’s too late for impeachment; and impeachment, hurried and successful, would only remove the offensive little fuck a few weeks sooner than is already inevitable. It provides no criminal justice.

    Hmmm.


    ‘Murican Justice

    The Hague sounds wonderful, but there’s no way the next administration is going to allow a former president be extradited to a foreign country for criminal proceedings. Won’t happen without an internal war or a high profile champion for the cause.

    An angry mob in Crawford, a citizens arrest, a video taped confession, and a cell in Leavenworth shared with a very endowed and very horny cellmate.

    Now that’s Justice, American style.

  3. My first thought is that the movement should be focused on your initial question, “What to do with Bushco?” If we try to settle on a specific action, I think we’ll wind up arguing about which one is best and loosing folks in the long run. If we want this BIG – I’d like to see us engage everyone and start a rumble.

    I guess what I’m seeing is something like your question, the list of crimes, and then ask another question, like “Are we going to let him get away with it?” (not the right one yet, but I’m just trying to get the feel)

    And maybe a petition is the way to go. But how about just asking folks to go to change.gov and write something there demanding the accountability message of their choice. Could we flood the site with activity on this?

    Just my initial thoughts. I’ll be anxious to hear what others think.  

  4. … about this before.

    Here is something we might be able to get behind:

    The Obama administration can act quickly after taking office in January to reverse the secrecy trend of the last eight years and restore openness in the executive branch, according to a set of new proposals posted online today by the National Security Archive. More than 60 organizations joined the recommendations, which call on President-elect Obama to restore efficiency and openness to the Freedom of Information Act process, reform the classification system to reduce overclassification and facilitate greater declassification, and ensure that presidential records are handled in accordance with the law and Congress’ intent.

    ….

    A diverse coalition of groups convened by the National Security Archive developed the three proposals. If adopted, the recommendations would establish the needed framework for accountability, integrity, and greater effectiveness in the federal government. The proposals call on the president-elect to take the following actions during his first days in office:

    Issue a memorandum on the Freedom of Information Act that establishes a policy of maximum possible public disclosure of government records and directing an attorney general memo that reinstitutes the presumption of openness under FOIA, calls on agencies to use technology to engage with and inform the public, and commits to creating a more collaborative and less adversarial relationship with the public on issues involving access to information. Read the FOIA Proposal (warning, pdf).

    Revoke President Bush’s executive order on the Presidential Records Act, which undermined the PRA by purporting to create new constitutional privileges for the family members and descendents of former presidents and for former vice presidents; commit to working with NARA and Congress to ensure necessary oversight for the transfer and processing of the Bush presidential records; and establish a policy for the new administration to preserve all presidential records of administrative, historical, informational, or evidentiary value. Read the PRA Proposal. (warning, pdf)

    Issue a presidential directive rejecting prior abuses of the classification system and tasking the relevant executive branch agencies to develop a new executive order on classification that will reduce overclassification, add internal mechanisms to prevent classification abuses, ensure consideration of the public interest throughout the lifecycle of classified information, and improve the declassification process and information sharing. Read the Classification Proposal (warning, pdf).

    Just as an example, here’s a list of the groups who sponsored the FOIA paper:

    AccessNorthwest

    American Association of Law Libraries

    American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression

    American Political Science Association

    Animal Welfare Institute

    Association of American Publishers

    Association of Research Libraries

    Brechner Center for Freedom of Information

    Brennan Center for Justice at New York University

    California First Amendment Coalition

    Center for National Security Studies (CNSS)

    Citizen Advocacy Center

    Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW)

    Citizen’s Outreach Project

    The Constitution Project

    Defending Dissent Foundation

    DownsizeDC.org, Inc.

    Electronic Frontier Foundation

    Equal Justice Alliance

    Essential Information

    Federation of American Scientists

    First Amendment Coalition of Arizona

    Government Accountability Project (GAP)

    International Association of Whistleblowers

    International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ)

    James Madison Project

    Liberty Coalition

    Maine Freedom of Information Coalition

    Mississippi Center for Freedom of Information

    Muslim Advocates

    National Coalition for History

    National Freedom of Information Coalition (NFOIC)

    National Immigrant Justice Center

    National Security Archive

    National Whistleblowers Center

    Northern California Association of Law Libraries

    The Ohio Coalition for Open Government

    OMB Watch

    Open Society Policy Center

    OpenTheGovernment.org

    People For the American Way

    Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

    Political Research Associates

    Progressive Librarians Guild

    Project on Government Oversight (POGO)

    Public Citizen

    Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)

    Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press

    The Rutherford Institute

    Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations

    The Sunlight Foundation

    Sunshine Center of the North Carolina Open Government Coalition

    Sunshine Week

    Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse

    Veterans for Common Sense

    VoterWatch

    Virginia Coalition for Open Government

    Washington Coalition for Open Government

    Western Environmental Law Center

    Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council

    Maybe by supporting some of these groups we can help our own cause.

  5. Restoring Our Constitutional Democracy In America (ROCDIA).

  6. …to my latest request to hold the Bush Administration accountable for their crimes, either through impeachment or through legislation to prevent blanket pardons.  I was originally going to include only snips, but decided to include even more of it because it is throughly despicable

    and clearly demonstrates the rigid, do-nothing mind set of these Congress-critters.  We have our work cut out for us.  We may have to take to the streets and risk lasers, tazers, phasers, and muerters!

    Dear M….

    Thank you for your letter concerning impeachment proceedings against President George W. Bush and his authority to grant pardons. I appreciate the time you took to write and welcome the opportunity to respond.

    I believe we are at a point in time where partisan politics and divisions within our country must come to an end. Our financial institutions are suffering. Our economy is in crisis and we are also at war in the Middle East. I believe that impeachment proceedings against President Bush will only divide the country even further, frustrating our hopes for a meaningful change in direction, while having little chance of success.

    The election of Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) as President has started a new chapter in our history, and the President-elect has said that he wants to heal the divisions in this nation and create a sense of unity. Although I have been deeply disappointed and outspoken by many of the Bush Administration’s actions, it is time to focus on constructive and cooperative steps that would lead our country in the right direction.

    Please know that I read and understand your concern about potential abuse of presidential pardons by President Bush.  Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution gives the president “Power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.”  A reprieve reduces the severity of a punishment without removing the guilt of the person reprieved.  A pardon removes both punishment and guilt.

    Most judicial scholars interpret the President’s power to grant reprieves and pardons as absolute.  Individual reprieves and pardons cannot be blocked by Congress or the courts.  The Framers of the Constitution envisioned the pardon power as having a narrow purpose. It is my hope that President Bush will use his Constitutional authority wisely.

    …snip…

    Sincerely yours,

    Dianne Feinstein

           United States Senator

    Makes me feel really sick!

     

    • brobin on December 2, 2008 at 23:33

    I have some ideas percolating as I type.

    If you would like me to help coordinate some things around the net and discuss some ideas regarding content, let me know.  You have my e-mail addy here.  This could be good, if done on a large scale.

    Good thinkin’ as usual, boss.

    • ctrenta on December 2, 2008 at 23:58

    … I’ll bring it up again.

    Draft a non-binding ordinance of some sort with the proper local, state, federal officials names in them, tell them your town approves the prosecution of George W. Bush for murder, and get it on your local ballot for the next election. The more towns that do this and pass them, the bigger story it will be. Look at Vermont when 34 towns passed impeachment resolutions. No, it didn’t start impeachment proceedings. But it did make a big splash in the media.

    Other suggestions:

    Call your local radio show, write letters to the editor, suggest that book I keep touting by Vincent Bugliosi, form a town-to-town campaign getting local selectboards to pass them, etc. I think After Downing Street.com has a resource center for this.

    Give it a shot. It may not see the light of day in the end but I will say that it feels good to think you have momentum on your side. Vermonters definitely felt that after Town Meeting Day 2007 and when the Vermont Senate passed the impeachment resolution, 16-7.  

  7. What ever movement gets started up, it has to be across all demographic lines. Even the good ole’ pukes are bummed at the economic situation and are holding the cheney/bush gang responsible.

    Start with getting the FOIA restored, as Npk suggested, and get the evidence of the financial high jinks, going back to the cheney energy commission, which have taken money out of the pockets of all us, the right included. Get them mad at the theft of their money and they will start getting mad about the other stuff which will be revealed by the economic investigations.

    Hey, nascar is suffering because of the economics of the neocons, get them to understand that and the rest will start cascading.

    Show them to be the crooks that they are well enough, and the legal crimes, and nuances will be exposed from a direction that would be much harder to be put off as partisan politics.

  8. From wapo.

    Laura Bush asked members of Congress to pick local painters to decorate ornaments for this year’s 20-foot Fraser fir in the Blue Room. The globes (to be unveiled by the first lady tomorrow) are supposed to showcase something special about each congressional district. Washington state’s Rep. Jim McDermott contacted a local arts organization, which asked Lawrence, a collage artist, to create the local entry.

    “I was at first nauseated, then realized it was an opportunity,” said Lawrence, 55, who frequently combines politics and satire in her work and saw this as the perfect way “to highlight Jim McDermott because he’s a hero of mine.”

    The nine-inch ball is covered with swirly red and white stripes — and, in tiny glued-on text, salutes the Democratic congressman’s support for a resolution to impeach President Bush…Lawrence sent it off to D.C. in September and was very surprised it was accepted for the tree — and that she was invited to this afternoon’s White House reception for the artists, which she flew to D.C. to attend.

    I guess Laura has had second thoughts.

Comments have been disabled.