Article: Conyers/Ellison in Minneapolis Town Hall Meeting on Health Care/Impeachment this Sunday

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This Sunday, September 23rd from 1-3 p.m. at The Historic Heights Theater in Columbia Heights just north of Minneapolis, Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison is hosting a Forum on "Health Care for All Americans" with special guest Congressman John Conyers, Jr. Conyers is the chief sponsor of HR 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act and is also the Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, where any impeachment process of President George W. Bush and/or Vice President Richard B. Cheney must be initiated. H. Res. 333 to impeach Cheney, which has 20 cosponsors, including Ellison, was submitted to the House Judiciary Committee by author Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) and has been forwarded to The Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties, on which Ellison and Conyers both sit. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) is the only other of the thirteen subcommittee members (eight Democrats and five Republicans) to have cosigned H. Res. 333. Subcommittee Chair Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), cosigned H. Res. 635 to impeach President Bush in the 109th Congress which was authored by Conyers, but neither has as of yet shown support for either H. Res. 333 or a new resolution to impeach Bush. Health Care reform is desperately needed and this bill would be a wonderful step toward caring for the medical needs of all Americans. Unfortunately, it is destined to join the more than eighty bills effectively mothballed by Republican obstructionists in Congress or those stymied by Bush vetos and/or signing statements. ImpeachforPeace requested a Minneapolis Town Hall meeting on Impeachment from Ellison's office months ago and it was put on the calendar for... September 23rd. We wanted an earlier date, but that was the best they said they could do. It was taken off of their calendar, then put back on, then taken off again after the bridge collapse necessitated major re-shuffling of Rep. Ellison's schedule. We have sent the following e-mail to Rep. Conyers's scheduler with copies to Ellison's office as well as our Mineapolis membership: Ms. Shelby, (BCC: MPLS ImpeachforPeace members) As you know, the Honorable Rep. John Conyers will be in Minneapolis this Sunday, September 23rd hosted by our Honorable Rep. Keith Ellison for a Public Forum on Health Care Reform. We had a Town Hall meeting on the topic of Impeachment originally scheduled for September 23rd with Rep. Ellison that was cancelled in order for this event to take place. We of www.ImpeachforPeace.org are completely aware of the dire need to reform our national health care system and fully supportive of every genuine effort to do so. However, we strongly feel that fully addressing the crimes and misdemeanors and premeditated, comprehensive attack on our Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties by the Administration of President Bush and Vice President Cheney as outlined clearly in: "GEORGE W. BUSH versus the U.S. CONSTITUTION - The Downing Street Memos and Deception, Manipulation, Torture, Retribution, and Coverups in the Iraq War and Illegal Domestic Spying - compiled at the Direction of Rep. John Conyers" is of far greater immediate concern. We also consider attempts to reform the health care system or to pass any other substantial progressive legislation as futile through at least January 20th, 2009 in light of GOP Senate obstructionism along with President Bush's signing statement proclivity and veto power. We have organized events locally that have brought together hundreds, even thousands of people in support of impeachment and are in the process of organizing and recruiting people to show up en masse this Sunday to push for impeachment. While we do not intend to disrupt the proceedings as an organization, nor are any endorsed acts of civil disobediance planned at this time, we do not have control over the actions of our individual members and they will each choose their actions according to their convictions. If a commitment is made to initiate impeachment proceedings or Rep. Conyers joins Rep. Ellison as a cosponsor of H. Res. 333 to impeach Vice President Cheney or if Rep. Conyers will resubmit H. Res. 635 from the 109th Congress to impeach President Bush or if Rep. Conyers will agree to meet privately with our leadership council this weekend prior to the Town Hall event on Sunday, that would go a long way toward allowing the Sunday event to focus on the chosen topic of health care reform. That said, we will not be appeased by half measures and nothing short of the initiation of impeachment proceedings in accordance with Rep. Conyers' oath of office to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign AND DOMESTIC" will ultimately suffice. Domestic enemies to the Constitution have been occupying the highest seats of power in our great nation for 6 1/2 years and we are not going to stand silently by and allow another year and a half of damage to continue being done in our names - no matter how politically expedient it would appear to be for the national Democratic Party's 2008 election campaign hopes. Thank you for your consideration of our concerns and we await your reply, With great respect to Rep. Conyers' decades of courageous and altruistic leadership on behalf of the Detroit area and the nation, Sincerely, Mikael Rudolph cofounder: www.ImpeachforPeace.org minneapolis@impeachforpeace.org