Looks like Dick might have a wee might of trouble taking office now that he is under indictment, so nothing to worry about there. With Christmas season after elections traditionally being impeachment season (Clinton was impeached on December 16th) now is the time for Conyers to move. Impeachment activists are heading back to Washington this week, and cranking up a "Remind Conyers of His Promise to Impeach After the Election" Campaign.
See, back on March 17, 2008, in response to a question from the audience on whether Conyers would impeach once the Nov. 4 elections were over, Conyers said "You have my word on that."
CNS News reported At a gathering of liberal activists in Washington on Tuesday, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) was asked if he would commit to holding the Bush administration accountable once a Democrat is in the White House and illegal acts have been pinned on President Bush. "Yes, you have my word on that," Conyers replied. He then shook the questioner's hand as a sign of his commitment.
Conyers, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, told an audience at the liberal Take Back America Conference that he is wrestling with the idea of beginning impeachment proceedings against President Bush and Vice President Cheney, but he believes that such an effort might hamper Sen. Barack Obama's chance of winning the presidency.
However, Conyers guaranteed his liberal audience that he will pursue legal action against Bush after the November elections.
Once he is out of office, you can't impeach him, and Congress cannot "pursue legal action" against a private citizen. That would up to the Attorney General, and it would be tried in the court system, not the Democratically controlled Senate.
"There are those who said, if you elect Democrats to Congress, we will guarantee you two things: Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y) will become chairman of the Ways and Means Committee and he will raises taxes; and Conyers will become chairman of the Judiciary and he will impeach President George W. Bush," Conyers said. "You want to make them half right?"
ImpeachTime.org is cranking up a "Remind Conyers of His Promise to Impeach After the Election" Campaign. The campaign would be everyone faxing the above-linked article to Conyers' office all week and following up with phone calls saying "Congressman, please remember your WORD on impeachment." When backed to the wall, this man with an honorable history early on in his career might rise to the most honorable of all legacies.
The media might have to pay attention to new motions by Wexler and Kucinich on the House floor. The networks have been running stories about pardons and executive privilege, for example on MSNBC last week. The climate has changed. With the election out of the way no one who sincerely cares about accountability can say 'let's not jeopardize the election.' It's a different ballgame.
At the very least an official impeachment inquiry should be called on the Administration scrubbing the 2002 "White Paper" of the conclusion that Saddam was not an imminent threat, and would attack only if we attacked him first. Congress WAS NOT looking at the same intelligence on the eve of the Iraq war vote. Also open-and-shut is Bush's reauthorization of the illegal NSA surveillance program (no investigation necessary, he friggin bragged about it on TV) and the defiance of subpoenas in the Gov. Seigelman investigation. If these spineless, despicable creatures called congressmen could muster minimal cajones it could be BYE BYE GEORGE a month early. They are passing up a slam-dunk. Obama will not always be president, and Bush is passing along a neat little tool-kit on how to break the law and get away with it to a president who could make Bush look reasonable and accommodating, unless impeachment firmly takes that kit out of the Executive Branch's hands.
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INDICTMENT FOR DUMMIES
