There is no doubt in all minds but the the 30-35% that both Bush and Cheney deserve impeachment, And the cry for impeachment is reaching crescendo levels. However, I feel that going after these two would be a large waste of precious time that should be spent continuing and expanding the current investigations and starting new investigations of those that made the Bush/Cheney policies happen.
Bush and Cheney (and mostly Cheney) may be the driving forces behind what appears from here to be the complete collapse of the US government, but there are many high ranking lieutenants that grew up politically under Nixxon during Watergate, Reagan during Iran-Contra and Bush I that are making these policies happen. After these administrations, this vermin crawled into their holes then reappeared once Bush II took office. Cheney his self came from the Nixxon WH. John Negroponte, took the Nicaragua option (death squads) and instituted it in Iraq. There are many others who should have done hard time but were either pardoned by Bush I or just plain escaped.
Now we're seeing perpetrators like God Camp veteran Monica Goodling in high places who are young and asking for immunity. 8, 12 or 20 years from now Goodling and many others like her can and likely will show up again and restart their corruption likely in ways even now we can't imagine. So we need to look at what John Dean wrote back in December:
Focusing On Bush Administration Officials
Lowering the aim of an impeachment effort to focus on those who have aided and abetted, or directly engaged in, the commission of high crimes and misdemeanors, would have all the positives, and none of the negatives, of going after Bush and Cheney. It would not be an effort to overturn the 2004 election, but rather to rid the government of those who have participated, along with Bush and Cheney, in abuses and misuses of power; indeed, many among them have actually encouraged Bush and Cheney to undertake the offensive activities.
Many of these men (and a few women) are young enough that it is very likely that they will return to other posts in future Republican Administrations, and based on their experience in the Bush/Cheney Administration, they can be expected to make the offensive conduct of this presidency the baseline for the next president they serve. Impeachment, however, would prevent that from happening.
It will be recalled that Article I, Section 3 of the Constitution states: "Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States." (Emphasis added.) After any civil officer has been impeached, under the rules of the Senate, it requires only a simple majority vote to add the disqualification from holding future office.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20061215.htmlWhen you find roaches in your house, you don't go around killing each one you find as you find them. You spray some good insecticide around to get rid of even those you can't see and make sure that any new ones that show up soon are gone. Impeaching as well as prosecuting these underlings will go a long way to ridding the country of these people and will be a much better use of precious time. Disqualifying them from holding future office will be a good safeguard that ensures they will pay a penalty. No presidential pardon can undo that.
As for Bush and Cheney, build the case against them now, prosecute them and imprison them here when they leave office, then turn them over to the International Criminal Court. And in the very likely event that they will both be pardoned, just render them to the ICC in January 2009.
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