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An Open Letter to Nancy Pelosi
Madam Speaker:
It is time to impeach George Bush and Dick Cheney.
We all know the case for doing so: the litany of this administration's offenses is long and tragic, the damage they have wrought to our nation and the principles it was founded upon profound.
And yet many of us understood - even if we did not agree - when you said "impeachment is off the table." Your case was credible, if not persuasive. The proceedings would have been disruptive, making progress in other areas difficult, and the fact that three of the last six presidents would have been impeached by the opposition party could have damaged the presidency and sunk this nation into a permanent partisan war. It could have fed the notion that impeachment proceedings were simply another political maneuver to be used by partisans to cripple their opponents, much as partisan Republicans did with Clinton. And with two years remaining, this did seem a high price to pay for getting rid of George Bush and his partners in crime. Taking the high road had a certain nobility, even if it didn't satisfy a hunger for justice many of us felt.
But now - with scarcely eighteen months left - you have no choice but to impeach Bush and Cheney regardless of the cost, because it has become increasingly clear that the very foundations of this nation have been assaulted as never before in our history, and to let that record stand would be an act of cowardice on your part and a dangerous precedent to future presidents.
Others have laid out the specific charges, and they are legion. But it is the nature and character of the offenses which leave you no choice. This administration has not simply broken specific provisions of arcane laws, or committed "misdemeanors." They have sought to fundamentally rewrite the Constitution in a manner that is more to their liking. They have systematically put the interest of a political party over the interests of the nation, committing serious crimes in the process.
The commitment to basic civil rights inherent in the Bill of Rights has been violated with a cavalier arrogance unprecedented in our Nation's history. Both the First Amendment and the Fourth Amendment have been compromised. Indeed, had it not been for the Supreme Court, these cherished provisions would have been all but consigned to history's trash heap. But we can no longer rely on them to safeguard our rights. The new Court has exhibited a reckless disregard for precedent, and a certain randomness in their interpretation of the Constitution in general and the Bill of Rights in particular.
The careful system of checks and balances, so carefully constructed in our Constitution, and so jealously guarded by elected officials throughout our history has been eviscerated by signing statements, secrecy, and lies. The de facto dictatorship of the executive has been enshrined in the theory of the "unitary executive."
This has all been done under cover of a never-ending "war" which this President and Vice-president lied the country into. Indeed, to this day, they cannot articulate a real reason for embarking on this war. The President has proffered no less than twenty-two separate justifications for it, and none has survived scrutiny. Iraq has become the ultimate - and ultimately tragic - tautology: we are there because we are there. But now, as the clarifying lens of history brings this catastrophe into sharper focus, the full cynicism and criminality of this administration's Iraq policy is emerging: we are there because of oil interests, and the political clout a war president can wield.
Finally, this administration has played fast and loose with the most fundamental principle in a democracy: the vote. Born in deceit in Florida 2000; re-elected in 2004 with the taint of voter fraud in Ohio; accused of politicization of the Justice Department - the guardian of the right to vote - in 2006, there is a rapidly growing body of credible evidence that they played an active roll in caging voters, suppressing turnout, and constructing a legal staff at Justice that would support such efforts.
All of this has been conducted under a cloak of official secrecy reminiscent of the Soviet Union. Characteristically, they have stonewalled attempts to examine their records, ignored Congressional subpoenas, and withheld information needed for Congressional oversight. Indeed, it is now known that the White House maintained a shadow e-mail system and used it for official business, and that some 500 critical e-mails from the official White House system are "missing." Meanwhile, Cheney has made the preposterous claim that he is not a part of the executive branch in order to avoid disclosing any information to the Nation's archives, making a mockery of our Constitution.
Honest men and women can no longer doubt that there is more than probable cause to impeach Bush and Cheney on the most serious of charges and the highest of crimes.
In the end, their chief offense has been nothing less than to treat the Constitution as a document of convenience. They have substituted their theory of governance for that of our founding fathers.
If you fail to impeach Bush and Cheney, you elevate the opinions of partisan hacks like Addington, Yoo, and Gonzales, over the cherished and proven principles of governance advanced by statesmen such as Adams, Jefferson, and Madison, and our nation and our democracy will forever be changed, for the worse.
Yes, impeachment is disruptive; yes, we must preserve it for only the most heinous of offenses; and yes, it will make it difficult to conduct other business.
But future presidents must know that they will be held accountable; they must know that they cannot ignore the Constitution simply by wagging the dog; they must know that Congress is vigilant and that they serve the people by jealously protecting their rights.
Fear is democracy's worst enemy, secrecy its greatest threat, but they are a despot's best friend. Despots operate in secret and thrive on the ignorance it creates. They wield fear to frighten the people and paralyze opposition.
Those who would champion freedom must have the courage to confront the fear-monger and expose his stratagems and the wisdom to know when it is necessary.
Two hundred and twenty years ago, as the constitutional convention was concluding, a lady asked Benjamin Franklin whether we had a Republic or Monarchy. Franklin's famous reply, "A Republic, if you can keep it," is as true today as it was then.
History is watching, Madam Speaker. The fate of our Republic is in your hands. We look now to you for the wisdom to know it is time, and courage to act upon it.
86 Comments so far
Show AllBadminton is right-to get any progress would take the same tactics that the civil rights demonstrators used and would also end up with beatings, jail, and possibly deaths. Is it worth those severe consequences to save our country? That is a question everyone must answer for themselves.
The US Constitution was supposed to be your burden and saviour: Protect, and be protected. However, it would appear that you've let that sham of a document be well and truly buried. Just don't mention the 2nd Amendment, eh, (oops!)…I did once but I think they got away with it!
Be assured, however, that your Queen and benevolent mother now patiently awaits your return to the safety of the 2nd Amendment-less royal bosom. The kettle has been set to boil and it's nearly tea-time, pip pip. Your Majesty's door will be open wide, of course, so haste ye back, oh wayward children of Old England. You know you must…and don't forget to bring some of China's finest, though your superiors at the Eastern end of the Atlantic are no doubt somewhat resigned to having to slurp that crappy Earl Grey instead. You never could quite get it right with the tea, could you!
Great letter. I agree that Speaker Pelosi did what she thought was right at the time, and given the circumstances before the election. Times have changed, and the Cheney/Bush cabal are staring down Congress and the American people, taunting us to do something. This is nothing short of a coup, and Speaker Pelosi knows this. I think as the press corp begins to do its job, and pressure builds on our representatives, Speaker Pelosi will change her mind. If she doesn't we have lost.
Open letter to Nancy and all her cohorts it seems to be time to pack and leave your lies and distortions have gotten the better of you.
We cannot believe what you say and cannot stand to hear any more. Goodbye
Let's just hope Pelosi reads this "open letter", for hope is all what us "commonors" have left at this point!
This article is so on point! Thank you for publishing it.
The author does a great job of demonstrating why Pelosi should be compelled to begin impeachment proceedings. My problem with her rationalization is that it has no basis in reality.
Impeachment is disruptive. IT SHOULD BE.
We need to disrupt this president and his "dictatorship" agenda. His crimes and those of his administration, including Darth Cheney, cannot go unpunished. To do so would make a mockery of everything this country stands for.
It's never been a matter of partisanship. Libertarians and Goldwater conservatives are just as appalled at Bush's disregard for civil liberties as are those on the left. All of us share the common belief: We are governed by the Constitution. Any violation of the Constitution by our leaders is treason. Short and simple.
Given Bush's dismal approval ratings, it is almost self-evident that the American people would jump on any impeachment bandwagon. They'd probably want to hang the bloody fool from the nearest yardarm.
So what is Pelosi waiting for? Does she really believe that such a move would cost the Democraptic party seats in the upcoming election? On the contrary, such a move would probably result in a 40-state mandate at the presidential level and a 60 vote plurality in the Senate. Republicans and their media accomplices [Flush Blimpbaugh and Fox (fake) News] would be forced to fight to protect an unpopular president, and many would jump ship rather than fight to protect a lame duck. Those that stayed on the sinking vessel would be discredited and many might not resurface as a result.
I believe that impeachment would drive Bush's approval into the teens - the exact opposite of what happened to Clinton. And the non-stop barrage of reports coming out of Washington would trap Republicans in a net of their own making.
Pelosi had best get off her pampered bottom and issue the charge, else an independent candidate will most likely be sworn in in 2009, and Pelosi and the Democraps will be left scratching their heads at blowing a chance to, not only make history, but restore the rule of law to our country.
Thank you Mr. Atcheson for laying out this most excellent case, the major points of which have been volleyed around by our small community of conscience here on Commondreams.
THIS executive branch MUST KNOW that THEY WILL be HELD ACCOUNTABLE!
Mr. Atcheson and Fellow Progressives,
It is time to start expanding our "Framing" on this issue and complete the sentence (No pun intended)to:
Impeach AND PROSECUTE!
For these thugs, the embarassment in history is NOT NEARLY STRONG ENOUGH! They are International criminals who have murdered hundreds of thousands with their greed and egos.
In a perfect world, they would be tried, convicted (PLENTY of evidence!), and sentenced to life in prison or death!
In 1776 this wAs the end result for traitors AND SHOULD BE NO DIFFERENT NOW!!!
Excuse my cynicism, but allow me to share a comment posted to a June 29, 2007 Huffington Post article by Bob Geiger, "Pelosi On Bush Lawlessness: 'The American People Really Don't Even Know The Half Of It'"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Translation: We will proceed with all deliberate speed to create an exhaustive and comprehensive catalogue of the Bush cabal's numerous high crimes and misdemeanors, which will surely convince voters to throw themselves behind the corporatized moderate centrist Democratic presidential candidate.
But of course, we won't have time to actually bother with that icky impeachment stuff, and gee whiz, looks like we ran out the clock anyway!
Then the new Democratic president will take the predictable faux-Lincoln stance of letting bygones be bygones in favor of a new bipartisan consensus to right all those Bush-implemented wrongs!
Which, incidentally, is how Bill Clinton finessed the sticky social justice questions when he was elected. Not long ago, I read an interview in which Clinton was asked why his Department of Justice didn't pursue open legal matters in the wake of the Iran-Contra and S&L crisis scandals. He replied that a decision was made NOT to pursue those issues because it would involve keeping alive bipartisan conflicts and animosities. Since he saw his priority as building a working consensus between the parties and dispelling a strained and contentious political atmosphere, he believed that it would be counterproductive to offend and annoy Republicans by settling old scores. (I'm paraphrasing.)
It's like this scene in Casablanca:
Captain Renault: Oh no, Emil, please. A bottle of your best champagne, and put it on my bill.
Emil: Very well, sir.
Victor Laszlo: Captain, please...
Captain Renault: Oh, please, monsieur. It is a little game we play. They put it on the bill, I tear up the bill. It is very convenient.
-------------------------------------------------
So, pardon me if I'm less than enthusiastic to find that Pelosi intends to prepare a very detailed bill to present to our War Criminal-in-Chief and his henchpersons.
We must remember it is a two-part process. After
impeachment, then we need the Senate to hear the
case and convict.
Similar to a district attorney deciding whether or
not a conviction is possible before they decide to
indict someone? In this case it is probably even
more difficult since too many persons on the jury
are friends of the defendant.
Of course the likelihood of conviction should not
stand in the way of the House doing its part of
the job.
This is a beautifully penned, eloquent, and polite request. Mr Atcheson has exercised commendable self-restraint. But since I've had it up to my neck, I would have written to Pelosi but one sentence: Impeach those sons of bushes, you bch!
Someone in the mainstream media should ask Nancy Pelosi just exactly what the Cheney/Bush administration would have to do to put impeachment back on the table. What line would Cheney or Bush have to cross that they have not already trampled past multiple times? Short of something like Cheney executing political rivals in the Rose Garden by shotgun blast to the face during prime time, I can't think of an answer she could give.
If Pelosi won't start impeachment hearings against bush and chaney, then start impeachment
hearings against Pelosi! She is failing to uphold the law as much as dick and george are.
There will be no impeachment because there are no impeachable offenses. Pelosi knows this. Reid knows this. Clinton off all people knows this.
In 1 1/2 years we will have a new president - probably a Democrat. I wouldn't worry so much about impeachment, but spend your energy on electing your chosen candidate.
I wouldn't worry about car bombs or such, because the Islamofascists will use those for lesser countries. These fascists are very patient - they spent 8 years trying to figure a way to bring down The Twin Towers, after a failed first attempt. If the timing is right, 8 years from 9/11 will put a Democrat in office. Whatever these people have in store for us will be spectacular, and sad to say, we deserve it.
You are warned
Pelosi won't act. She can't even read.
Rudyjo,
We should just impeach the entire government. Their lies are legion.
Don Alejandro,
You are exactly right. What else can they do? Declare martial law? Round up the left and imprison them? Have random house to house searches for whatever made up reason? What else can they do?????
http://speaker.gov/contact/
Impeach Bush/Cheney NOW!!!!!
http://speaker.gov/contact/
Office of the Speaker
H-232, US Capitol
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-0100
John,
Thank you for this most sensible and articulate column. I'm particularly happy to see someone writing about the necessity for Pelosi to initially take the position that "impeachment is off the table."
It's clear that today, as always in politics, "perception is everything." You have laid out many of the valid reasons why Pelosi could not Begin her tenure with impeachment.
No doubt there remains much "impeachment fatigue" from the last most recent fiasco. The Pubics (who are, after all, actually obsessed with sex as well as power) just used Clinton's well-known weakness to entrap him. And, that's right, the "offenses" of which he was accused had nothing remotely to do with turning the U.S. into a rogue state.
I'm hoping that there are some people with brains left in the Demo party. And, that they took into account the genius of both Rove and the hugely effective Repugnican media machine.
Let's remember that as corrupt or lazy or insipid as the Demos often are, that we Don't want yet another misstep to land say a, "good-looking, morals-free, cold-as-ice-Mitt" or a "rip-em-to-shreds, truth-free Rudy" to find themselves in the Black-is- White House.
Sadly, Demos have needed to allow the Current Occupants' treacherous motives and deeds to be seen for what they are by a frightened, distracted, and complacent America public ----- At least to the point where an "average citizen" begins to think/mumble to self - the dreaded I-word, as in, "maybe it's not such a bad idea (and necessary) after all. These guys are Dangerous."
The Demos need to appear to have the American people (or some semblance thereof) force their hand in the face of the Enormity of the Misdeeds.
All of which were more or less predicable, simply by looking into King George's eyes from the very start of all this.
One more detail concerning my post at 3:17 p.m. A majority of Americans now favor impeachment hearings against Bush and Cheney. Go here to see the poll:
http://www.discourse.net/archives/2007/07/impeachment_polls.html
P.S. I am no great fan of Demos who show up time and again as cowardly, asinine, spineless morons. (show me where I'm wrong here)
It's just that politics - at our current level of collective consciousness - remains "the art of the possible" and has only minor allegiance to "the art of the moral."
Prediction: Things will be getting Mighty Uncomfortable for all of us into the forseeable future. Transformation =
Dis-integration, Chaos, and then -if we're very lucky - Re-integration at a higher level of systems integrity.
PSS. Gee, I wonder what the evil Mr. Rove and his flying monkey-minions will have in store for us next?
She won't read it and she won't do it. As Tony would say, "fogeddaboutit. It ain't goin to happen."
The traffic cops are off the beat, they've told the criminals that they won't enforce the law and the criminals are running red lights right and left.
It's called permissive legislature oversight with Democrats saying, "let's play nice now."
Hear hear!!!
Nancy Pelosi is a coward, plain and simple! She lives up to the Jackass symbol of the Dems...
I will be sending a copy of this letter to the Speaker, to my congressman and each of my senators. I contacted the author and asked his permission to use it and he said he hopes people will send her thousands of copies.
I hope that she gets hundreds of thousands of copies. I'll email this article to friends and urge them to send out at least one copy and to email the article to their friends.
To those who seem excited that there might be a logical response to the letter printed above...don't get a brain fart trying to come up with a senator's name who would be willing to present impeachment proceedings in the Senate after it clears the House. (Ha! as if that first step would even happen!) Heck, the Senate Dems couldn't even muster enough guts among themselves back in 2000 to investigate the election. If they would have, we wouldn't be talking impeachment today, now would we???! They're a sorry, sorry bunch. Time to move on. www.gp.org
According to http://www.maplight.org - Occidental Petroleum was the second largest donating organization to her campaign 2005-2006. She's on the payroll of the Attack Iran for Oil crowd. I hope that is not the mistake she waits for to impeach.
great article and great comments by logrithmic and others
Except, I believe it's Flush Phlegmball.
H.Res.333 is a bill to start the impeachment process. It was initiated by Kucinich. There are nine cosponsors:
Rep Clarke, Yvette D. [NY-11] - 6/6/2007
Rep Clay, Wm. Lacy [MO-1] - 5/1/2007
Rep Ellison, Keith [MN-5] - 6/28/2007
Rep Johnson, Henry C. "Hank," Jr. [GA-4] - 6/28/2007
Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-9] - 6/7/2007
Rep Schakowsky, Janice D. [IL-9] - 5/1/2007
Rep Waters, Maxine [CA-35] - 6/12/2007
Rep Woolsey, Lynn C. [CA-6] - 6/7/2007
Rep Wynn, Albert Russell [MD-4] - 5/10/2007
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/D?d110:1:./temp/~bd80KW:@@@P|/bss/d110query.html|
Pelosi's name is nowhere to be found.
What are Pelosi's motives not to impeach? And the motives of her DLC colleagues not to impeach?
I'll speculate.
She *wants* the abuse of presidential power to stand *because* she thinks one of her corporate, militarist Democrats will be president, and will have that power in 2009.
She *agrees with* the basic foreign policy of Bush of preventative war (which Clinton did a number of times in the 1990s) and doesn't want to pursue the obvious war crime of the invasion itself as Nuremberg's "supreme international crime" of illegal aggression. Why? Because she wants that power for her party and those who offer them campaign bribes.
She is more interested in playing it safe for likely electoral successes for corporate Democrats in 2008 than she is in saving the lives of US soldiers (three per day die) and Iraqis (600 per day die). Otherwise she would pass legislation to bring the troops home or would refuse to fund the escalation of the occupying US forces. (The Constitution gives Congress the power to make the rules for the armed forces.)
If Cheney *and* Bush were impeached and convicted, she would become president. She might fear accusations of conflict of interest over principles of legal justice to prevent future high crimes by presidents.
It is hard to know her actual motives.
The superb Atcheson article makes a great case, as does the text of H.Res.333.
For progressives, the key framing I like for the upcoming election is that of Charles Derber in his book Hidden Power. He makes the case that most Democrats support the same corporate regime (born in 1980) that virtually all the Republicans support, namely corpocracy; money ruling politics; the two-party duoply; a foreign policy based on violating international laws with impunity.
But there are regime-changing Democrats, the true progressives including Kucinich and those on the list above, as well as others.
With this framing, the task for us is to oppose corporate Democrats in primaries *and* with strong Green Party opposition in actual elections via some kind of unified strategy by progressives. The unifying infrastructure does not yet exist, but it is growing. We need state progressive caucuses in every state, not just 20. And a stronger Green Party. And strong, effective progressive candidates.
Logrithmic's news about Sheehan's threat to challenge Pelosi's seat in a primary is a perfect strategy for true progressives like Sheehan.
This just in - Sheehan plans to challenge Pelosi for her seat UNLESS she introduces articles of impeachment. YEAH!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070708/ap_on_el_ho/cindy_sheehan_pelosi_6;_ylt=AoPNaUpFByaRWDq_4IA7wdAE1vAI
So far just about everything that has moved through congress demanding justice be served has been looked over or shot down. No guts - no glory. Pelosi knows what she has to do and now the country is watching the first female speaker of the house to make her move; to do what she was voted in to do - to SPEAK!
Pelosi and the Dems won't impeach because, I believe, it's not that they're cowards, but that they are as interested in maintaining the empire as much as the GOP and won't do anything to threaten it. The Democrats are just a smaller pile of the same $#!+ as the Republicans.
Revolution is nigh!
IMPEACH PELOSI!
Nancy Pelosi is accountable to AIPAC and only to AIPAC. When these "scholars" and "visiting fellows" deign to green-light the impeachment it might then happen. But they are getting everything just exactly as they want it and like it from Bush and Cheney so it will never happen.
Pelosi can also be counted upon to vote in favor of attacking Iran when ordered to do so. She has already pledged as much to AIPAC in person. From the Washington perspective, there is no legitimate competing consideration. It is how you stay in office... history, democracy, morality, statemanship, honor be damned.
Nancy Pelosi will be denounced now and forever not for failing to impeach the President and Vice President, but for not having the courage to really try.
For this reason alone she deserves not to be elected again. For this reason alone she deserves to be shunned by all Americans
Excellent letter, John. I wrote this to Nancy Pelosi:
Dear Madame Speaker,
I refer you to John Atcheson's open letter at [cite].
These past six years have witnessed a relentless perversion by the Bush/Cheney administration of the Constitution and the laws enacted under it, now by stealth, now brazenly, but always by design and with a smugness born of the belief that no one will take them up on the matter.
They disgust every American raised on the ideals that made this nation great, ideals to which most of us still aspire, even as we see them trampled before our very eyes -- the more so for it!
Libby's commutation is only the most recent outrage. For me it was the last straw. I urge you to drop your position on impeachment and get on with it! Let me say this in conclusion: any Beltway consultants who advise you otherwise do not know the American heart or the good it yearns to see in its political leadership. Listen to the people.
Please!
History has long observed the downward descent into megalomanic hell and the psychopathological need to take the world along for the ride. We don't need to put Dick on the couch to know where his thinking is headed as his power wanes. What we need right now is a congress as preemptive as he has been.
I agree enthusiastically. Let's get on with it before time runs out.
l.j. fernandez wrote:
"What we need right now is a congress as preemptive as he has been."
Let me add...What we need is a congress of, by and for the people, not corporate interests!
No smoking gun.
As all of you wax so eloquently and passionately about the clear need for impeachment, I hope you are all supporting DENNIS KUCINICH in his bid for the presidency, with cash, with verbal acclaim to friends and acquaintances, instead of the warmongering, corporate-owned Big Dollar Bunch, all Pelosi's buddies!
DENNIS KUCINICH is the ONLY one with the courage and honesty to initiate impeachment through H.Res.333. Obama, Clinton, Biden, Edwards: they all pretend Dennis isn't there when he speaks at forums, or condescend to him. Get behind him, please, if you TRULY believe in the cause for impreachment.
These other candidates need to be pressured loudly and taken solidly to task for following in corporate interest-beholden Pelosi's footsteps.....
www.kucinich.us
"Let 's just hope Pelosi reads this "open letter", for hope is all what us "commonors" have left at this point!"
No---- JP Breeze it is not---- we can all---- all citizens, give the following message to Ms.Pelosi and the rest of the congress-----
Use your vote to impeach and hold this cabal of puppets accountable, Or I will use mine to replace you in the next election.
Impeachment of the President and his VP is mandatory because of what they have already done. However it is urgent in order to stop them from getting us into another un-winnable war, this time with Iran.
Madam Speaker please concur with what your constituents require from you.
Impeachment is too honorable.
The people of America (and world) need an immediate FIRING, removal and sentencing of the Bush/Cheney administration and everyone of its cohorts for incompetency and crimes against the country.
Only then will a loud and clear message be sent to people who are elected to represent the American people's wishes for peace, harmony and constructive prosperity, not conflict and a declining society.
When a politician makes a statement as concrete as 'it's off the table,' they won't change their mind. Otherwise they will be called a flipflopper which can mean defeat for a politician.
I don't think she has the guts to reverse her position on impeachment after such a bold statement. And it was a stupid thing for her to say after the Dems took over, because it just gave a green light to Bush and Cheney to do whatever they wanted - there would be no consequences...
She won't act. We will have to endure these nutjobs ruining the country for another 18 months. Maybe some citizens group can then sue them for their crimes....
IMPEACH PELOSI! "..........to defend the Constitution from ALL ENEMIES, FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC." You took the Oath, NANCY.
Maybe Ms. Pelosi doesn't want to impeach because she's afraid she will be swiftboated? What's in her closet?
To get Bush and Cheney impeached We The People need to do our part. We need to gather in the 100's of thousands and millions and hold angry, loud, disruptive demonstrations. We have to be ready to be tear-gassed and clubbed by riot cops, as anti-Vietnam war and civil rights demonstrators were.
Hey Dutch, I know it is useless to try to change people's minds, but when you bring up the term "islamofascists" it is a buzzword for the right wing nuts and although you have a right to your opinions, you really shouldn't express them when the world knows that the Islamists that want to implement Islamic law are about as far away ideologically from the real fascists that are running this country and other countries in the world. Do yourself a favor and google the definition of Fascism. It is a movement founded by Benito Mussollini (but its roots go back to a much earlier time).
FYI, the Bush/Cheny/Clinton group are so alike they cannot be seperated without surgery.
As far as your prediction about 2008, just remember whose family was financially connected with the terrorists who used airplanes to make their point, the Bush family. But that is not the point. Bush and his administration have committed crtimes against the people of this country, as well as the rest of the world. They lied about the reason for the war, about the war itself, as well as countless other ciminal offenses. In fact, their disrespect for the constitution (another thing you should google and read) is in itself criminal.
Impeach them, impeach them now, and don't stop with them, get them all. If the republican's steal the next election, Dutch, you will be happy, but I'm leaving, But if you expect things to get better, it won't matter who wins, things will get worse before they get better.
"But now - with scarcely eighteen months left - you have no choice but to impeach Bush and Cheney regardless of the cost, because it has become increasingly clear that the very foundations of this nation have been assaulted as never before in our history, and to let that record stand would be an act of cowardice on your part and a dangerous precedent to future presidents."
In my not-so-humble opinion, it would not only display cowardice to allow this administration to continue running our country as a dictatorship, it would also suggest a betrayal on the part of Congress not to hold the executive branch responsible for its unconstitutional behavior.
Congress has "investigative"..."subpoena"..."contempt"..."grant of immunity" and "perjury powers" to control the bureaucracy in this country; the problem lies in their unwillingness or neglect to exercise those powers.
After decades of neglecting their "oversight" responsibilities as representatives of the people, the majority in the House and Senate continue to pursue the same-as-ususal, screw-you attitude toward the people who elect them into office.
How much longer will you tolerate this B.S. before you cast a vote for a candidate who is willing to listen and respond to your voice and not the voices of the controlling elite?
Frankly, I've reached my toleration point. I WILL NOT continue to support the criminal element in this government, regardless of which party they belong to.
Enough is enough....and I have had enough!