9:53am CST, July 24th: For important updates to this entry, please visit today’s post.
The U.S. House is considering initiating the Articles of Impeachment for Vice President Dick Cheney today. Please read the email below, which was forwarded to me by Democrats.com last night, and follow the instructions to either e-mail or call your representative. The support of only three additional Representatives is needed. Make one of them yours. — Call Congress Today for Impeachment We’ve reached the impeachment moment for Vice President Dick Cheney. We’ve pushed the cosponsor list for H. Res. 333 up to 14. Chairman John Conyers says that if we get 3 more he’ll begin the impeachment proceedings. And many Congress Members must be recognizing that there is no other path available. Cheney and Bush have repeatedly refused to comply with subpoenas, ordered former staffers not to comply, and announced that the Justice Department will not enforce contempt citations from Congress. When a special prosecutor attempted to hold this administration accountable, Cheney’s chief of staff obstructed justice, and Cheney persuaded Bush to commute his sentence. There is no course left for Congress but Impeachment. On Monday, July 23rd, the fifth anniversary of the meeting that produced the Downing Street Minutes, Cindy Sheehan, Ray McGovern, Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Ann Wright, Debra Sweet, Dave Lindorff, David Swanson, Jodie Evans, Medea Benjamin, Kevin Zeese, and Tina Richards will lead a march to Chairman Conyers office and not leave until he agrees to begin impeachment proceedings. If you cannot be there, you can take two minutes on Monday and do two things: phone Chairman Conyers at 202-225-5126 and ask him to start the impeachment of Dick Cheney; and phone your own Congress Member at 202-224-3121 and ask them to immediately call Conyers’ office to express their support for impeachment. Your Congress Member might be one of the three needed, not just to keep impeachment activists out of jail but to keep this nation from devolving into dictatorship. Also email your Representatives: http://www.democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/73 ##### Courtesy of Sarah Lee, Democratic Members of the Judiciary Committee – we have the right to lobby any of them even if we are not consitutents: Democrats (23) Chair: Rep. John Conyers (DEM-MI-14th) Rep. Howard Berman (DEM-CA-28th) Rep. Rick Boucher (DEM-VA-9th) Rep. Jerrold Nadler (DEM-NY-8th) Rep. Bobby Scott (DEM-VA-3rd) Rep. Melvin Watt (DEM-NC-12th) Rep. Zoe Lofgren (DEM-CA-16th) Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (DEM-TX-18th) Rep. Maxine Waters (DEM-CA-35th) Rep. William Delahunt (DEM-MA-10th) Rep. Robert Wexler (DEM-FL-19th) Rep. Linda Sanchez (DEM-CA-39th) Rep. Stephen Cohen (DEM-TN-9th) Rep. Hank Johnson (DEM-GA-4th) Rep. Betty Sutton (DEM-OH-13th) Rep. Luis Gutierrez (DEM-IL-4th) Rep. Brad Sherman (DEM-CA-27th) Rep. Tammy Baldwin (DEM-WI-2nd) Rep. Anthony Weiner (DEM-NY-9th) Rep. Adam Schiff (DEM-CA-29th) Rep. Artur Davis (DEM-AL-7th) Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (DEM-FL-20th) Rep. Keith Ellison (DEM-MN-5th) H Res 333 has been referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties, I bolded the names of the Dem members of that subcommittee in the list above.
Filed under: cheney, congress, democrats, dick cheney, impeach, impeachment | 32 Comments
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Recent Comments
honjii on Wooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!! Brian on Wooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!
Conyers said that he need 3 more signatures to get impeachment going, with or without Pelosi.
It will be a great day to see Cheney impeached. Bush would b great but I don’t think Congress will go that far.
one step at a time, my friend… although i’d be just as happy to see Karl Rove and Gonzales gone as Bush.
The reason they’re doing Cheney first is so that Bush can commute his sentence later on. Do you seriously think the Democrats want to send one of their own to prison? I don’t fucking think so.
Richard,
I’m interested to hear why you think Cheney is one of the Democrats’ “own”… can you elaborate with support, please?
@Richard – Only problem is that Impeachment is the only sentence which the President is forbidden by law from commuting.
Oh wait.
Never mind.
unfortunately, i live in kentucky, with republican representatives. but i fully support Cheney impeachment, and thank you for your article, and the time you put into it. Good Luck, Freedom!
Logic dictates that if you remove Bush first, Cheney would then become president. Cheney would be the first to have impeachment proceedings brought against him.
By the way impeachment can not be commuted or pardoned. If you are thinking of Nixon, he was never impeached. He resigned the night before the articles of impeachment were voted on. Nixon knew the vote would be a slam dunk.
As far a Cheney being a democrat, that is the most ill informaed statement I have ever read. Cheney has been in 3 republican presidential cabinets. He has never espoused democratic party idea nor does he now or has he ever supported the democratic platform.
You don’t have to be from Michigan to call and encourage (demand) that Chairman Conyers move forward on impeachment. As Chairman of the committee he holds a special responsibility to all Americans. I just called but his mailbox is full! That is very good news!
“As far a Cheney being a democrat, that is the most ill informaed statement I have ever read. Cheney has been in 3 republican presidential cabinets. He has never espoused democratic party idea nor does he now or has he ever supported the democratic platform.”
I knew I wasn’t crazy. Thanks NyTexan =P
I am somewhat in agreement with Richard; I am losing faith in the Democrats to be any different (any stronger) than the Republicans when it comes to standing up to corporate money and influence. This move toward a dictatorship is coming from America’s first “CEO President” who is doing business Enron-style, thinking that, like a corrupted corporate CEO he is invincible and untouchable.
Not to insult the many good-business leaders of our nation, just drawing a link bewteen the crooks who want everything for themselves at any cost… and the good guys for whom the American republic and its freedoms come before political party or profits.
Wendy,
You make good points, but you have to remember that the Democrats are forced to work with a very, very stubborn GOP. For instance, last week they tried for 30 straight hours to force an Iraq withdrawal. The previous week, they were met with a filibuster when trying to legislate longer leave times for soldiers in Iraq. At every turn that they’ve tried to make progress, even unanimously (aside from Joe Lieberman, who is not a Democrat), they’ve been met with a wall. And I like to imagine that they are as frustrated as we are.
Wendy is correct, you don’t have to be from Michigan tp call Conyers. I called and you can figure out where I am. Also I feel that chairmen or women of committee’s should hear from all of us. I did call this morning.
George:
LOL…Bush is above the law but still ignorant.
Wendy:
I agree about corporate influence. The democrats are in bed with as many lobbyist and corporations is the republicans, but if that’s what Richard meant, I didn’t catch it.
“Do you seriously think the Democrats want to send one of their own to prison?”
No Cheney is not a Democrat. But any millionaire career politician has a lot more in common with Dick Cheney than with the rank of the working poor and shrinking middle class. They will impeach him if they fear for their jobs, but with the taming of the news media, and “we the people” running scared, don’t bet on action from either party. And when the people get REALLY pissed off, martial law and “anti-terror” provisions will protect the ruling class.
The comment about Cheney being a Democrat is only half right. All the Liberals are offended by this I am sure. But, if you look at all the corruption and money grubbing in our government, Democrats are only different from Republicans in name and the side of the issues they “say” they are on. Years ago it might have been different, but now days they ore different sides of the same coin. Show me the Democrat or Republican that hasn’t taken money from special interests, show me the Democrat or Republican that hasn’t taken the “multi-million dollar” retirement plan, show me the Democrat or Republican that has REFUSED a raise every year they have been in office.
We need to get rid of ALL of the politicians that take advantage of thier office. We need to get rid of all politicians that bow to the power of the flow of money, and accept money for votes on bills. When our Congress has an approval rating of 14% and our president has just a little higher approval rating, there is a great problem. This should be a wakeup call to them that we are on to them, and we are not going to take it.
Impeach Cheney, Impeach Bush, Impeach Pelosi and on and on and on, until we get somebody in office who is a “Civil Servant” and makes decisions based on what is greater for the nation and its citizens and not for thier career.
Democrats…Republicans……which thief is better? Voting for the lesser of two evils is worse than voting at all.
I don’t really care if Cheney is impeached, leaves office, gets a pardon on the way out, and then jumps back in as a lobbyist. I don’t WANT it, but I could live with it. Anything to get him out of the formal power structure.
As for martial law: I didn’t use to think it even remotely possible. Now, I do.
Brooks-
“We need to get rid of ALL of the politicians that take advantage of thier office. We need to get rid of all politicians that bow to the power of the flow of money, and accept money for votes on bills. When our Congress has an approval rating of 14% and our president has just a little higher approval rating, there is a great problem. This should be a wakeup call to them that we are on to them, and we are not going to take it.”
I think you’re missing the point that these things happen one at a time, and starting with removing Cheney from office is certainly not a bad thing.
One at a time is fine, but I compare it to picking through a fire ant hill for the ants that bite. I can assure you that there will be one stepping up to take his place, and he will bite too, (and he will tell you he has a MANDATE FOR CHANGE!) Give me a break, I did not just fall off the turnip truck. I have been around for 30+ years and even I can see them for what they are. Opedna if you think getting rid of Cheney is a means to an end…. we are far worse off than I have previously thought. Remember the tip of the iceburg is only the part that you can see.
There needs to be a great upheaval in America. WE THE PEOPLE, need to stand up and take back what was given to us by the Founding Fathers. All politicians need to fear the will of the people and respect us as a whole. Right now we are just a money tree, and they respect us only as long as we give them what they want. When the heat on one of them gets too hot they bait and switch and bring up the bad things on of the other has done. There is always a fall guy, and he has been paid very well for his sacrifice.
“Opedna if you think getting rid of Cheney is a means to an end…. we are far worse off than I have previously thought. Remember the tip of the iceburg is only the part that you can see.”
I don’t see it as a means to an end; I’m looking forward to him being brought to justice, partisanship aside. I still believe that if you commit the crime, you do the time. Not under Bush’s reign, obviously, but I naively hope that can change.
BROOKS, I agree that this country needs major upheaval. I don’t know how to force it, so I have this blog to try and reach out to people who agree. I really hope you’ll come back, visit more, and share more insightful comments on here.
Thanks.
“unfortunately, i live in kentucky, with republican representatives. but i fully support Cheney impeachment, and thank you for your article, and the time you put into it. Good Luck, Freedom!”
Thanks Shane… people like you are the reason I do this!
OPEDNA, You and I agree about the need to at least start holding these people accountable for their actions. I am very active when it comes to notifying my Congressmen and Senators about anything that I feel needs their attention. Kudos to you and for keeping up a blog, where people can debate their opinions and beliefs. I just want everyone that reads these blogs and reads the news and sees these attrocities commited against the masses to know that we do not have to put up with this, but we do have to start somewhere. Don’t ever settle for the lessor of two evils.
Whatever my political affiliation, I am first and foremost a TRUE PATRIOTIC CITIZEN. I believe that the Constitution gave us the RIGHT to question our leaders and bring them to Justice when they go astray. I understand that sometimes it seems that by doing ONE thing, we have accomplished something…..but our Constitution alows us, and gives us the POWER to do SOOOOOOO much more!
Keep up the blog, its good to get people talking, because talk leads to action.
Major change can be accomplished if our citizenry realized that in the last presidential election only 16% of the country (I can’t remember the EXACT number but it is not far off)voted. That means that 84%+- did not cast their opinion……..worse of all most of those that didn’t vote, did so because they believe that “there is nothing that I can do… or my vote doesn’t count anyway….or nothing is going to change.”
We presented a cake to Conyers when he was here in SoCal visiting Maxine Waters.
http://www.cotam.org/blog/archives/45
Great post.
Peace
Matthew
9/11 = Inside Job
http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/911.html
Thanks for visiting my blog!!
As far as Conyers is concerned, it looks as though we lost his support:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/25012#comment-136794
It is PAST time that we begin impeachment hearings on the Vice President and the President. NO ONE, my friends, is ABOVE the law yet these 2 leaders choose to spit in the face of the Constitution of the US. If we do not accept our responsibility as a leader at this time, we are lessening the value and worth of our own US Constitution.!
“…show me the Democrat or Republican that has REFUSED a raise every year they have been in office.”
Russ Feingold.
I know what you mean, but there IS a difference. Particularly with exemplary Democrats like Feingold. And, speaking of impeachment, Conyers.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, Winter:
Russ Feingold for President.
Cheney attended Yale University, but he flunked out. Cheney was twice prosecuted for and convicted of drunk driving. Cheney lied to former U.S. House Majority Leader Dick Armey about the grounds for going to war in Iraq. Cheney is a pathological liar. Cheney is incompetent. Cheney would like to think that he is above the law. However, Cheney must pay for crimes against the United States and the world.
Submitted by Andrew Yu-Jen Wang
B.S., Summa Cum Laude, 1996
Messiah College, Grantham, PA