[southnews] The Case for Bush impeachment Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:24:07 -0500 (CDT) There are two indisputable infractions that warrant impeachment. The invasion of a sovereign nation (Iraq) under false pretenses is without question an impeachable offense. George Bush and those in his service lied about many things in order to justify the invasion of Iraq, including that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and that it was involved in the 9-11 terrorist attacks. A complete list of the Bush administrations 935 lies leading up to the war in Iraq can be digested at http://www.publicintegrity.org The second infraction is the illegal wiretapping of American citizens under the guise of protecting us from terrorism. It is a violation of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which protects Americans against unreasonable search and seizure, and states that no search warrants shall be issued unless there is evidence of a crime. This action also violated the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which requires that a secret FISA court approve warrants for national security wiretaps. It is a crime for government officials to conduct electronic surveillance outside of the limits of that law. It doesnt end there, however. George Bush has been involved in other reprehensible activities that may also be impeachable offenses. The Case for Impeachment by Deb Della OpEdNews, PA 1 hour ago Its too bad George Bush wasnt caught hanging out with high-priced call girls. It seems thats the only way we can get suspect public servants out of office here in America. Lying to Congress and the American people hasnt done it. Killing more than a million people and laying a sovereign nation to waste hasnt done it. Abandoning his citizens after the worst natural disaster in history (Hurricane Katrina) hasnt done it. Violating the terms of the Geneva Convention by allowing torture hasnt done it. Yet, mere hours had passed after Eliot Spitzers sordid little sexcapades became public knowledge before the I word surfaced. Now, Ive been in favor of raising the impeachment discussion, but theres one little problem. They got the wrong guy. Its not that I think Eliot Spitzer should be given a free ride. What he did to his family, first and foremost, is despicable. His behavior certainly makes a sham of his image as a crusader of ethics in government. However, I cant help but feel that everyones response to this scandal is just a bit over the top, particularly when we have such an immoral, law-breaking group of thugs leading what was once seen as the greatest nation in the world. A rap sheet of high crimes and misdemeanors The Constitution states that government officials can be impeached for treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors. The high crimes and misdemeanors portion is, of course, open to interpretation. However, most legal scholars agree that an impeachable offense does not necessarily have to be an indictable offense. Impeachable offenses can be behavior that undermines the integrity of a public office; shows disregard for constitutional duties or involves the abuse of power. Richard Nixons impeachment was for illegal wiretapping of political opponents and obstruction of justice for trying to cover it up. Bill Clintons impeachment was for having sex with an intern and then lying about it to a grand jury. Illegal wiretapping and lying are legal, historical precedents. We have to go no further to justify filing articles of impeachment against George W. Bush. There are two indisputable infractions that warrant impeachment. The invasion of a sovereign nation (Iraq) under false pretenses is without question an impeachable offense. George Bush and those in his service lied about many things in order to justify the invasion of Iraq, including that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and that it was involved in the 9-11 terrorist attacks. A complete list of the Bush administrations 935 lies leading up to the war in Iraq can be digested at http://www.publicintegrity.org The second infraction is the illegal wiretapping of American citizens under the guise of protecting us from terrorism. It is a violation of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which protects Americans against unreasonable search and seizure, and states that no search warrants shall be issued unless there is evidence of a crime. This action also violated the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which requires that a secret FISA court approve warrants for national security wiretaps. It is a crime for government officials to conduct electronic surveillance outside of the limits of that law. It doesnt end there, however. George Bush has been involved in other reprehensible activities that may also be impeachable offenses. The Bush administrations practice of torture, kidnapping and extraordinary rendition of detainees from Iraq and Afghanistan to other countries is a violation of both national and international laws. In the case of Hamdan vs. Rumsfeld (2006), the U.S. Supreme Court stated that military commissions set up by the Bush administration to try prisoners at Guantanamo Bay not only violate the Uniform Code of Military Justice but also Common Article 3 of the Third Geneva Convention. It should also be noted that both U.S. and international law states that if a prisoner dies because of such a violation, the penalty is death. Many so-called unlawful combatants have died under illegal U.S. capture as a result of torture. One such story, about a young Afghan taxi driver named Dilawar who was beaten to death in 2002 while in U.S. military custody, was told in this years Academy Award winner for Best Documentary, Taxi To The Dark Side. Other potentially impeachable reprehensible infractions include obstructing the investigation into and covering up knowledge of the deliberate exposure of Valerie Plame, an undercover CIA operative. Her husband, Joseph Wilson, was the envoy sent to investigate allegations that Saddam Hussein was attempting to buy uranium from Niger and determined that the story was not true. The faulty intelligence found its way into President Bushs State of the Union address eleven months later anyway. Wilson was a critic of the Bush administrations Iraq war and it is widely believed that the White House, as payback for her husbands position, leaked Plames name. There has even been speculation that Bush conspired in the initial outing. There have been questions surrounding the 9-11 terrorist attacks almost from the beginning. Conspiracy theorists abound and most have been made out to look like crackpots. Yet, there are some nagging facts that cant be dismissed and that was the reason for pressing for the establishment of the 9-11 commission to begin with. It is no secret that the Bush administration obstructed the investigation into the attacks and that he lied to both Congress and the bi-partisan 9-11 commission. Even the most reasonable person must conclude that this administration has something to hide. Former Georgia Senator Max Cleland, who served on the 9-11 commission, criticized the Bush administrations efforts to hide information about the governments law enforcement and intelligence failures prior to the attacks. It is clear that George Bush has seriously undermined the office of the Presidency of the United States, shown reckless disregard for the basic principles of the Constitution, and abused his presidential powers. Our forefathers made it clear that the pursuit of impeachment in such a case is not just our right. It is our duty. No more lame excuses Nancy Pelosi took impeachment off the table purely for political reasons, not because it was in Americas best interest. She didnt want to give the Republicans political ammunition. At other times, Pelosi has stated that ending the war in Iraq is more important than pursuing articles of impeachment. It is 2008 and all the Congress has done is continue to fund the Iraq war to President Bushs desired levels. There is no real end to the Iraq war in sight. When I wrote to my own [Democratic] congressman regarding the I word his excuse for not pursuing impeachment was that it would take time and energy away from getting any meaningful legislation passed. What meaningful legislation has been passed since the November 2006 election? What could be more meaningful than restoring some level of trust in our government? What single piece of legislation could possibly be more important than the act of restoring the power to the people taken away by Bush and Cheneys willful expansion of the executive branch? What better vehicle to send the message to Bushs successor, regardless of party affiliation, that this type of lawless government will not be tolerated? Those in Congress who would prefer to take the high road and wait out Bushs final term will tell you that theres not enough time to pursue impeachment proceedings. However, the impeachment process itself, regardless of how much time Bush has left in office, is valuable. It would remove President Bushs ability to hide behind the cloak of Executive Privilege. No doubt President Bush would have you believe that pursuing impeachment in a time of war weakens us and makes us more susceptible to a terrorist attack. But just the opposite is true. Holding our elected leaders accountable for their actions shows strength of character and is essential to restoring Americas integrity. http://www.sacredorderofthefishhead.blogspot.com Deb Della Piana is a long-time advertising writer who now enjoys blogging about all kinds of things, one of them being politics. http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_deb_dell_080313_the_case_for_impeach.htm ------------------------------------ The archives of South News can be found at http://southmovement.alphalink.com.au/southnews/Yahoo! 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