Will Pitt on Repubs desperate strategy...

[annabanana]

Playing the Impeachment Card
By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t | Perspective

Thursday 25 May 2006

All in all, the framers would probably agree that it's better to impeach too often than too seldom. If presidents can't be virtuous, they should at least be nervous.

- Joseph Sobran

Representative John Conyers Jr. of Michigan is a small and soft-spoken man. One gets the definite sense upon meeting him that here is a man who could probably have made a fortune in Hollywood, had he chosen a different direction in life, playing the role of the wise and kindly grandfather. He wound up in public service, and today - if you listen to Karl Rove and the GOP - he is easily the most terrifying man in America.

Back on May 10th, Howard Fineman wrote for MSNBC: "Then there is the attention being paid - and it's just starting - to obscure Democratic characters such as Rep. John Conyers of Michigan. As of now, only political junkies know that Conyers, an African-American and old-school liberal from Detroit, would become chairman of the Judiciary Committee if the Democrats regain control of the House. Few know that Conyers has expressed interest in holding hearings on the impeachment of the president."

A direct-mail piece from Senator Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) popped up several days ago. In the mailer, Dole warned that unless the faithful donate money for the midterm elections, rampaging Democrats were going to, "increase your taxes, call for endless investigations, Congressional censure and maybe even impeachment of President Bush."

A Fox News online editorial acknowledges the very real possibility of a Democratic takeover of the House, and proposes several steps the Democrats should take in such an event, in order to do right by the country. "Step one," reads the Fox editorial, "would be for the Democratic leadership to definitively put to rest any loose talk of impeaching President Bush. They should say in one and two syllable words that impeachment will not happen once they are in the majority and thus take away a potential rallying cry for the beleaguered Republicans."

-- snip by Moderator --

DU Respects Copyright material. Citations should be no more than 3-4 paragraphs with a link to the original source.

For more information on this article, please click:

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/052506J.shtml


Lithos
DU Moderator

[kpete]

1. Let me be the first to say-

Thanks for posting!

[annabanana]

5. - must be done -

(The writing's just too good not to share.)

[WiseButAngrySara]

10. You beat me to it! I just checked to see if kpete had posted it yet!

Thanks annabanana!

[11cents]

2. Ah, Joseph Sobran

Fired from the National Review for his promotion of white supremacist and antisemitic publications.

[bryant69]

3. Still a good quote

I think.

H. L. Mencken, for example, was a guy I don't think I would have agreed with on a number of issues - but still, the guy knew how to craft a phrase.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[madokie]

4. thanks for posting this, I like Pitt's writing

:kick: :thumbsup:

[bleever]

6. "Vote for us, or else we'll be held accountable!"

And...free advice for Dems from Fox!

A Fox News online editorial acknowledges the very real possibility of a Democratic takeover of the House, and proposes several steps the Democrats should take in such an event, in order to do right by the country. "Step one," reads the Fox editorial, "would be for the Democratic leadership to definitively put to rest any loose talk of impeaching President Bush. They should say in one and two syllable words that impeachment will not happen once they are in the majority and thus take away a potential rallying cry for the beleaguered Republicans."

:rofl:


Recommended.

[Coexist]

11. that was my favorite line, too - in fact...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=1282350&mesg_id=1282350

that's what I titled the thread. No takers! I kept Mr. Pitt's name out of the subject line on purpose, to avoid the attack of the vultures. I am happy to recommend this. Great piece.

[Kostafarian]

31. It must suck

having to self sensor.

These vultures must have very sharp teeth.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

7. GAY MARRIAGE! GAY MARRIAGE!

AMEND THE CONSTITUTION!


<ignore the original post>

GAY MARRIAGE!

THINK OF THE CHILDREN!!!

GAY MARRIAGE!

<dont look at the original post>

GAY MARRIAGE!

CONSTITUTION!!!

GAY MARRIAGE!

<have you gone away yet?>

[Catrina]

8. 'Burton was throwing mud. Waxman will be throwing fire, ' So will

Conyers ~

if they have nothing to hide, what are they afraid of? The answer, clearly, is John Conyers. He is, you'll hear soon enough, a terrifying man.



Thanks Annabanana, excellent article ~

[lyonn]

9. Investigations - Couldn't happen to a more deserving

bunch of politicians. Thanks for the concise and informed article.

Must make mention of the Valerie Plame & Co. investigation, the lady was a covert agent and this admin. trashed her, plain and simple. People have gone to jail for spying against our country and this crime of outing a covert agent and covert company would seem to fall in that category, people could die due to this outing. This is seldom mentioned when the media discusses the "Plame Case."

[Guaranteed]

12. ABSOLUTELY OUTSTANDING. Will, that is the best article

I have ever seen you write.

Come on back. Don't worry about it.

[sinkingfeeling]

13. Great stuff, Will! Thanks!

[Laurab]

14. K & R "Vote for us -

or else we'll become accountable" indeed!

And that kindly seeming John Conyers, who still believes in the Constitution and silly stuff like that, well gosh who knew what a monster he was? The image and the spin on that one just won't match....I just can't see it. He's too soft-spoken and intelligent for that to work, but let them have fun trying.

[novalib]

15. BRAVO!! BRAVO!!

BRAVO, Mr. Pitt!!

And THANK YOU for saying what you said in this article!

As usual, you are the voice of reason in a landscape littered with William Pitt wannabes!

KEEP IT UP!!

[Peace Patriot]

16. Wonderful article, Will! And I think we can understand the FBI raid on

a Congressman's office, the jerking around of Cynthia McKinney on her CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT to enter Congress unimpeded by ANY PERSON, and the latest assault on this once EQUAL branch of government, the threatened (or is it already happening) interrogation of members of Congress on their knowledge of crimes of this regime. And all this follows Bush's announcement that the laws that Congress passes are not really laws for him or his junta--he gets to decide if he will obey them or not, and writes little codas at the bottom of these bills, when he "signs" them, exempting him from the rule of law.

This has been a grave assault on the rights, privileges and powers of Congress that could well have been initiated in anticipation of a Democratic majority in the House. They are setting the precedents NOW. We can strongarm you and prevent you from entering Congress using "national security" as an excuse (expressly forbidden by the Constitution for ANY reason). We can send the FBI or anybody we wish to raid of your offices, at any time, on allegations or suspicions of a crime (which, in Bushspeak, means, whenever we feel like it). Pass laws if you like; we will ignore them.

These actions are not aimed at Bush's "pod people" Republicans in Congress, who pose no threat to the Bush junta. They are aimed at the future, I think--at the threats that you lay out in this article.

With the Bush junta at or below a 30% approval rating, and Congress even lower--and with just about the only thing they have left in their fascist arsenal being hatred of brown people--I think it's POSSIBLE that American voters will blow these Bushite corporate election theft machines right out of the water (--or, rather, into it--into 'Boston Harbor,' that is!). I'm not predicting it, because I think the American people are still pretty demoralized and feeling very disempowered. The mystifying "loss" of the 2004 election, after all that effort--20 million new voters signed up, 60% of them Democratic, with a landslide for Kerry among new voters, independent voters and former Nader voters--really got to people, I think, as it was intended to.

Worst of all, most people don't know to this day what really happened--WHO got control of the voting system in the 2002-2004 period--and they think of that election as a kind of madness that seized the country, causing it to "re-elect" a regime that was creating a $10 TRILLION deficit (90% opposed), planning to raid Social Security (70%-80% opposed ), and torturing prisoners (63% opposed to it, "under any circumstances"), with a blithering idiot of a front man whose appearances, even in the debates, had to be carefully managed.

That's where a lot of Americans are at: OTHER Americans are stupid or crazy. It's taking them a long time--reduced, as we are, to almost word-of-mouth communication--to find out about the most "black-holed" story of the entire junta, "TRADE SECRET," PROPRIETARY programming code in the new electronic voting systems, controlled by Bushite corporations, with virtually no audit/recount controls--a coup engineered by the biggest crooks in Congress, Tom Delay and Bob Ney, abetted by Christopher Dodd.

It's hard to look around you and find that every institution that you have ever believed in has failed you--including, on this issue, the Democratic Party. "Denial" is understandable. But that has to change--and is changing. Whether or not people will grok this new reality, and do what needs to be done in the face of it--massive voter turnout, paper ballot voting where possible (absentee ballots, etc.), and close monitoring and analysis of suspicious results--in time for this year's elections, remains to be seen. Unless they can be made aware of the specific threat--the NON-TRANSPARENCY, UN-VERIFIABILITY and BUSHITE CORPORATE CONTROL--of electronic voting machines and central tabulators, they may succumb to vague suspicions and disillusionment, and not vote. Change will be delayed--and come to a boiling point in '08 instead.

The other threat--a big one--is suppression of the vote by nefarious Bushite tactics such as were used in Ohio, Florida and other states, in '04--such as purges of poor, black and other Democratic voters from the voting rolls. The Bushites, and their brethren at Diebold, ES&S and Sequoia, are hanging onto their stealthy electronic power with tooth and claw--they CANNOT win elections without it--and are also working hard on new ways to suppress the vote.

In view of all this, I am not optimistic about a Democratic takeover of the House this year. In a fair vote, the Bushites would be long gone--as they would have been in '04 as well. But it's NOT a fair vote. And it's a stretch even to call it an "election" under these non-transparent conditions. It could as well be called tyranny.

I think we WILL get our country back, but I don't think it's going to be as easy and quick as a massive victory (needed just to win) in one election. I think we're in for a long term fight, and we need to gird ourselves and hearten each other for a long, difficult struggle. It is an historic one, on a scale with the first American Revolution. Can we RESTORE American democracy, and pass it along to the future?

[aquart]

29. The problem with those purges?

This time they'll have to purge the Republicans, too.

[many a good man]

33. Isn't it about time we purge the Far Right in the USA?

A major part of the imbalance in American politics today is the lack of a far left wing. They were driven out of the public sphere by a concerted effort of purges, blacklisting, dirty tricks and propaganda while far Right still roams free.

Just as the knowledge of Stalin's heinous crimes against humanity discredited the American far left, the uncovering of Bush's crimes should put an end to the far right movement now.

Bush and company are AUTHORITARIAN. Let's get that through our heads. So are many of his supporters. They are totally inimical to democracy. They should be relegated to the dust bin of history before its too late.

[electropop]

36. Most excellent essay!

We will have to keep pounding the drums about election fraud, so folks know what's going on when it happens. That will feed the rage and help recruit patriots to end the invasion.

[fishnfla]

17. "We're not wrong, just bad!"

kick

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

18. Still On Your Game Will!

[ThoughtCriminal]

19. An important side-track issue

What is the justification for limiting subpoenas to the majority party? This is one of the things that has really screwed up the balance in Washington.

[johnaries]

20. Thanks for posting, anna, And thanks to Will for writing it!

And yes, if we retake the House they ahd BETTER fear John Conyers!

[sellitman]

21. Will...how about an investigation into...

White Powder? Not the white powder junior likes....the stuff that only made it to the Democratic offices a few years ago.

I'd like to see that investigation.

Anthrax? Ricen? Whatever it was...it only hounded the Dems.

Where is the outrage?

[Catrina]

23. Thom Hartmann mentioned that today ~ he covered the period of time

right before it happened when Sen. Jeffords switched parties, giving the Dems the majority and the Patriot Act was going to be voted on. Sen. Daschle and Sen. Leahy had objections to it and both were anthraxed.

I saw Daschle on Charlie Rose about a year ago and CR asked him what he would remember most from his experience as a Senator. Daschle looked very serious and said 'the day my office was anthraxed'. I don't think Charlie Rose expected that answer ~ but you could see that it had seriously affected Daschle, which is understandable.

Daschle also went to the Senate floor on one occasion and in a very speech told Congress that because of the hateful rhetoric about him on shows like Rush Limbaugh his family had received bomb threats ~ and he had to have protection. The rightwing went after him even more after that. These people are dangerous, and yes there really does need to be an investigation into the anthrax attacks.

[The_Warmth]

22. K&R

Wonderful Read

[proud patriot]

24. great article

[pacalo]

25. Thanks for posting, annabanana!

Excellently written, as usual, but comforting as well.

[Barad Simith]

26. this is so exciting - kicked, recommended, bookmarked, propagated

"Vote for us, or else we'll be held accountable!"

the whole article is great, but that line nails it

[TheCentepedeShoes]

27. Another BRAVO

:applause: To Will and annabanana ! Truly great !

Ooops - left out Peace Patriot (forgive?)

[Gman]

28. Raising the threat of impeachment in effect puts Bush on the ballot

and up for "reelection". Use it as a way to rally the faithful to vote to keep him 2 more years.

It just might work if the GOP scandals stop.

[jjmalonejr]

30. That was awesome

I don't know if we'll see Will Pitt around here again or not, but I hope we do.

He sure knows how to turn a phrase.

[snot]

32. The Dems' best shot might be to PROMISE impeachment. nt

[JuniperLea]

34. Great post! Thanks AB... and WP!

Does posting in this thread automatically stamp your passport for ignoreland?

:P

Great piece of work!

[lividtiff]

35. The Democratic majority in the house

WOULD be a wonderful thing for this country. Truths would be revealed that would shock the socks off of most americans, that is, if the don't steal the elections in November. I think the biggest challenge would be to get the public aware of the problem with the voting machines, so we can make sure our votes count!