http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/23514Impeachment of Bush & Cheney Voted Two to One in Princeton
Submitted by davidswanson on Mon, 2007-06-11 12:22. Impeachment
Close to 100 people attended a panel by experts on impeachment June 10 where members of the Princeton Community Democratic Organization (PCDO) voted for a resolution of impeachment against Bush and Cheney by a vote of 31-13. Organized by Linda Gochfeld MD and Mary Ellen Marino who head the PCDO’s Impeachment Task Force, the regular meeting of the PCDO was swelled by many other concerned area residents.
David Lindorff, co-author of The Case for Impeachment with Barbara Olshanski, Esq. argued, “The Constitution is at risk” and that the primary offenses have no need for public hearings since they are publicly admitted.
These are:
1. The assertion in 1200 signing statements that as commander-in-chief in a “time of war” the executive does not have to enforce laws passed by Congress. The Constitution states that the Congress enacts laws and the Executive enforces them.
2. The violations of the FISA Act passed in 1978 after Nixon was impeached for wiretapping. A Federal Judge in Michigan in July 2006 ruled that President Bush was committing a Class a felony and violating the Bill of Rights by these acts.
3. Torture was authorized by the President despite warning by the Attorney General that he could be subject to capital punishment. 100 people have died under US torture and the President has failed to stop and to punish it.
Rob Kall, publisher of OpEdNews, predicted “that Cheney and Bush will leave office without being impeached as did Agnew and Nixon”. Kall said, “Hearings are happening and everything’s on schedule for The Walk when Republicans will go to the White House and tell them to go.”
Mark Crispin Miller, a professor of media studies at NYU and author of Fooled Again: The Real Case for Electoral Reform, asserted that Bush has never actually been elected. If we take our laws seriously, we must impeach. If we believe in America and its radical democratic experiment, we have no choice, that impeachment is a patriotic obligation.” Miller stated that Bush is the most unpopular President ever and that the media are a “cartel” of five companies, not a reflection of the American people.
Miller argued that the Administration is not conservative but radical: they don’t believe in government, fiscal prudence, or separation of powers, they favor corporate welfare and want to destroy the separation of church and state. He says when this administration was warned about 9/11, they did nothing; warned about Katrina, they did nothing; when warned about after Iraq sliding into chaos, they did nothing; and warned about creating more terrorism, they did nothing; likewise mad cow disease, vioxx etc.
When questioned about the practicality of impeachment with a slim margin in the Senate, Lindorff explained the debate at the Constitutional Convention on impeachment. He said. “The Founding Fathers wanted it to be easy to impeach – in order to condemn actions, but hard to remove from office.” He also noted for those concerned about the effects on the 2008 election, “Democrats made out like bandits on Nixon. Despite his winning by a landslide in 1972, he lost by means of impeachment hearings that began May 1973 gripping the country, and resulted in “The Walk” and his resignation in August 1974.” He also suggested that Democrats make sure that impeachment becomes a bi-partisan effort.
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
