The "I" Word
Eternal Hope takes the administration to task on 14 seperate impeachable crimes, from falsifying evidence about Iraq's WMD capabilities to the use of white phosphorous in Fallujah. Real crimes that led to tens of thousands of deaths.
Criminality and unconstitutional activity must not be allowed to be set as a precident for future administrations. As amazing as the idea that everything will be okay again if the 'opposition party' takes the White House in 2008 - as if all the last six years's misdeeds could be so easily swept beneath the rug - is the idea that Americans have 'scandal fatigue'. Any talk of impeachment inevitably draws comparisons to the Clinton impeachment - which was, of course, a debacle for the then-Republican Congress, being a transparent and petty witch-hunt. Linda Milazzo draws the obvious distinctions:
America, the nation, will regain some of the moral authority diminished by Bush and Cheney. The rest of the world will know that America can distinguish between insignificant and substantial. Clinton was impeached for matters insignificant to his leadership of the nation. Bush will be impeached for matters so substantial that they caused the deaths of thousands and endangered the whole world.
Let's Impeach The President
Criminality and unconstitutional activity must not be allowed to be set as a precident for future administrations. As amazing as the idea that everything will be okay again if the 'opposition party' takes the White House in 2008 - as if all the last six years's misdeeds could be so easily swept beneath the rug - is the idea that Americans have 'scandal fatigue'. Any talk of impeachment inevitably draws comparisons to the Clinton impeachment - which was, of course, a debacle for the then-Republican Congress, being a transparent and petty witch-hunt. Linda Milazzo draws the obvious distinctions:
America, the nation, will regain some of the moral authority diminished by Bush and Cheney. The rest of the world will know that America can distinguish between insignificant and substantial. Clinton was impeached for matters insignificant to his leadership of the nation. Bush will be impeached for matters so substantial that they caused the deaths of thousands and endangered the whole world.
Let's Impeach The President
Tags: Impeachment
posted by Management at 10:26 PM
2 Comments:
Articles of Impeachment against Bush and Cheney
by Eternal Hope
Fri Nov 24, 2006 at 04:10:20 PM PST
If we are to impeach, we must impeach both Bush and Cheney. It will not do any good for us to impeach Bush and have Cheney take the Oval Office and pick someone just as radical as he is. It will also not do any good for us to impeach just Cheney and allow Bush to groom John "I'm not knowledgeable" McCain for the 2008 election. Therefore, we must simultaneously impeach both of them so that the 3rd person in succession, Nancy Pelosi, would become the next President of the United States.
What remains to be done is for us to work out articles of impeachment against the President. Others may surface after the Democrats begin their job of investigating and getting to the bottom of the matter. If the Bush administration obstructs or lies to the Congressional Committee chairs, those could in and of themselves be grounds for impeachment and removal of Bush and Cheney.
In the meantime, here are the following 14 possible articles of impeachment against the President and Vice President.
1. Leaking classified information by disclosing the identity of Valerie Plame to reporters.
The President and Vice President unlawfully leaked classified information, the identity of a Non-official Cover, Valerie (Wilson) Plame, to a person or persons not authorized to receive such information, namely, Robert Novak, a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, and Matt Cooper, a reporter for Time Magazine.
Law violated:
National Security Act of 1947.
Whoever, having or having had authorized access to classified information that identifies a covert agent, intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent’s intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both.
(b) Whoever, as a result of having authorized access to classified information, learns the identity of a covert agent and intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent’s intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
© Whoever, in the course of a pattern of activities intended to identify and expose covert agents and with reason to believe that such activities would impair or impede the foreign intelligence activities of the United States, discloses any information that identifies an individual as a covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such individual and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such individual’s classified intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.
(d) A term of imprisonment imposed under this section shall be consecutive to any other sentence of imprisonment.
2. Lying to congress -- passing false information about Iraq's WMD capacities.
George Bush and Dick Cheney passed false information to Congress about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction capabilities, to wit, their possession of chemical weapons, biological weapons, and delivery systems. Furthermore, George Bush and Dick Cheney passed false information to Congress by falsely stating that Iraq was an imminent threat to the United States and that military action was therefore necessary.
Law violated:
18 USC 1001.
Whoever, in any matter within the jurisdiction of any department or agency of the United States knowingly and willfully falsifies, conceals or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact, or makes any false, fictitious or fraudulent statements or representations, or makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or entry, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
3. Extraordinary Renditions.
George Bush and Dick Cheney authorized the arrest and transporting of prisoners to secret jails in Morocco, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, and Eastern Europe for detention and torture without trial.
Law violated:
6th Amendment of the Constitution.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.
4. Detentions without Trial.
George Bush and Dick Cheney detained thousands of people at Guantanamo Bay without the possibility of trial and without access to effective counsel.
Law violated:
6th Amendment (see above).
5. Torture.
George Bush and Dick Cheney either ordered or caused other foreign countries to perform torture on suspects illegally detained under sections 3 and 4 of these articles.
Law violated:
8th Amendment.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
6. Misappropriation of Funds.
George Bush and Dick Cheney diverted funds from Afghanistan to Iraq as documented in Bob Woodward's "Plan of attack" and failed to notify Congress of such appropriations.
Law violated:
Iraq Liberation Act of 1998.
The President shall notify the congressional committees specified in section 634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 at least 15 days in advance of each obligation of assistance under this section in accordance with the procedures applicable to reprogramming notifications under section 634A.
7. Bombing Iraq without Congressional Approval.
George Bush and Dick Cheney authorized over 21,000 bombing missions on Iraq without Congressional approval before passage of the Iraq War Resolution in October 11th, 2002.
Law violated:
Article I, US Constitution.
To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water;
8. Conspiracy to pass false information.
George Bush and Dick Cheney conspired to pass false information about the nature of the intelligence on Iraq to the US Congress in conjunction with British Prime Minister Tony Blair for the purposes of triggering a war with Iraq as documented in the Downing Street Minutes.
Law violated:
18 USC 1001 (see above).
9. Lying about Niger connection.
George Bush and Dick Cheney lied to Congress at the State of the Union and elsewhere by falsely stating that Iraq had procured Uranium from Niger.
Law violated:
18 USC 1001 (see above).
10. Contempt of Congress.
George Bush and Dick Cheney showed a contempt of Congress by stating their intentions to violate laws passed by Congress or cause others to do so over 750 times.
11. Illegal wiretaps.
George Bush and Dick Cheney repeatedly bypassed the court system by ordering wiretaps without authorization from judges and without obtaining a warrant.
Law violated:
4th Amendment
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
12. Concealment of the existance or nature of Domestic Intelligence Programs.
George Bush and Dick Cheney concealed the nature and extent of the JPEN program, used for the purpose of domestic intelligence.
Law violated:
18 USC 1505
Whoever, with intent to avoid, evade, prevent, or obstruct compliance, in whole or in part, with any civil investigative demand duly and properly made under the Antitrust Civil Process Act, willfully withholds, misrepresents, removes from any place, conceals, covers up, destroys, mutilates, alters, or by other means falsifies any documentary material, answers to written interrogatories, or oral testimony, which is the subject of such demand; or attempts to do so or solicits another to do so; or
Whoever corruptly, or by threats or force, or by any threatening letter or communication influences, obstructs, or impedes or endeavors to influence, obstruct, or impede the due and proper administration of the law under which any pending proceeding is being had before any department or agency of the United States, or the due and proper exercise of the power of inquiry under which any inquiry or investigation is being had by either House, or any committee of either House or any joint committee of the Congress—
Shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years or, if the offense involves international or domestic terrorism (as defined in section 2331), imprisoned not more than 8 years, or both.
13. Destruction of Evidence.
George Bush and Dick Cheney destroyed evidence in conjunction with Plamegate.
Law violated:
18 USC 1505 (see above).
14. The use of White Phosphorus in Iraq.
George Bush and Dick Cheney authorized the use of White Phosphorus in Iraq in November 2004 during the Fallujah offensive.
Law violated:
US Army Field Manual, Chapter 5, section 3.
(4) Burster Type White phosphorus (WP M110A2) rounds burn with intense heat and emit dense white smoke. They may be used as the initial rounds in the smokescreen to rapidly create smoke or against material targets, such as Class V sites or logistic sites. It is against the law of land warfare to employ WP against personnel targets.
"Americans Can't Handle Another Impeachment" Is Republican Propaganda. Don't Be Deceived.
by Linda Milazzo | Nov 25 2006 - 8:51am | permalink
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"Americans can't handle another impeachment." So say the supporters of George W. Bush in their anti-impeachment propaganda.
The truth is Americans CAN handle another impeachment. They CAN handle the truth. In fact, if Americans don't bring Bush and Cheney to justice after the atrocities they've committed, this nation will never reclaim its moral authority. And the people of this nation will be despised for unleashing these dangerous men on the world.
"Americans can't handle another impeachment" isn't a truth. It's a device. Like 'weapons of mass destruction.' 'A mushroom cloud.' 'Gassed his own people.' 'Sought significant quantities of uranium from A-f-r-i-c-a.' These are the sound bytes, the parroted propaganda, which brought us to war. Each is a proven lie, told time and again by well-rehearsed pundits. Verbatim delivery. Robotic form. Repeated ad nauseam by grown-up children of the damned. It sounded good for Nicholson in "A Few Good Men," but rings pretty hollow here. Americans CAN handle and probe for the truth.
As soon as the midterm elections were settled and Democrats took back control, the Republican parrots flew onto the scene. The first to land was smooth talking Connecticut Congressman Christopher Shays, who perched on cspan the morning of November 9th. Within minutes Shays proclaimed the pitfalls of impeachment, responding to an oped by former Republican House Majority Leader, Dick Armey. In his article, Armey advised Republicans to "demonstrate an ability to be good stewards of the taxpayers' hard-earned money. If Republicans do these things, they will also restore the public's faith in our standards of personal conduct."
Shays' indoctrinated response: "He's totally right, but we didn't lose that [the public's faith] in the last week or two or month. We lost it when we decided to go after the President [Clinton] and impeach him. The moment we did that Republicans thought this is how we gain the absolute majority. The irony is after trying to impeach the President in the sixth year of President Clinton's term in office we should have picked up seats. We lost seats. You would have thought right then and there that we would have woken up. We never got back to our agenda after impeachment."
Observe Shays' specific reference to the sixth year of the President's term. The message from Shays to Democrats: Impeaching George Bush will cost you in 2008.
The message from Democrats to Shays: We won't succumb to your sound bytes. We won't listen to your lies.
An analysis by John Nichols, written that same day in The Capital Times, proves historically that impeachment is not a political liability. Nichols says, "There have been nine attempts since the founding of the republic to move articles of impeachment against a sitting president. In the cases in which impeachment was proposed by members of an opposition party, that party either maintained or improved its position in Congress at the next general election. In seven instances the party that proposed impeachment secured the presidency in the next election."
Thus quashing Shays' Republican propaganda.
If America and Americans are to be resurrected in the eyes of the world, proper investigation of the Bush administration is a Democratic mandate. If, as I believe, incontrovertible evidence of Bush and Cheney's high crimes and misdemeanors is uncovered, impeachment proceedings should go forth. Already, prior to any Congressional investigations taking place, volumes have been written delineating the impeachable crimes of Bush and Cheney. High level symposiums have been held. Dozens of Constitutional scholars have spoken, all convinced of their guilt.
Conversely, prior to Bill Clinton's impeachment, just one principal volume detailing his "crime" was prepared. A scandalous and shameful project, salaciously compiled by Special Prosecutor Ken Starr in a political witch hunt that was obvious to the world. The impeachment of Bill Clinton was an international embarrassment. To most of the world, Clinton was a beloved and respected leader, guilty of a personal indiscretion. Not of high crimes and misdemeanors. Not of lying the nation into war. Not of bypassing and ignoring the Constitution. Not of reversing a Constitutionally prescribed centuries old law.
What shocked the world most about Bill Clinton's impeachment was that he was ever impeached at all. It made a farce of our political system, and our values. Americans appeared petty and juvenile. Unable to distinguish between what was crucial to good governance and what was not. Impeaching Bill Clinton was a black mark on our history. Not against him. Against us.
But impeaching George W. Bush will be constructive for America and Americans. It will be educational. Americans will watch the proceedings and learn about the Constitution. They'll receive a long overdo lesson on the Constitutional responsibilities of their President, the balance of powers, and gain a clearer understanding of their own rights and freedoms. Americans will acquire an insight into proper governance to make them better stewards of their democracy.
America, the nation, will regain some of the moral authority diminished by Bush and Cheney. The rest of the world will know that America can distinguish between insignificant and substantial. Clinton was impeached for matters insignificant to his leadership of the nation. Bush will be impeached for matters so substantial that they caused the deaths of thousands and endangered the whole world.
Americans needn't worry that Impeachment proceedings and investigative hearings will detract from Congress' time to attend to its legislative responsibilities. I have the utmost confidence in the organizational skills of Speaker Pelosi. I'm certain she will institute a process which permits Congress to fulfill its legislative duties while addressing the Executive's dereliction of duty. Unlike prior Speaker Hastert, Speaker Pelosi has made clear her edict to put an end to the House as a part-time Institution and return it to a full-time, fully functioning place of governance. We will hold her to that promise.
Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid were voted a mandate to probe for the truth. Though Pelosi contends "Impeachment is off the table," we patriots contend that it is not. When Pelosi says "Democrats don't get even," we say, Madame Speaker, we're not impeaching to get even. We're impeaching to make even... the Branches of government that have gotten out of line.
Let the proceedings begin!!
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