Minnesota Monitor writer Abdi Aynte, in a recent interview with Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) adopted FAUXNews framing in casting Ellison's cosigning of impeachment resolution H. Res. 333 as a move to "...keep those [...] far-left constituencies happy.
The article, entitled: After a year in Congress, Ellison proves critics wrong elicited my response online:
"Far Left"
Submitted by Mikael Rudolph of ImpeachforPeace.org
I must challenge your insinuation that our Representative was pandering to what you have inaccurately written off as the "far left" in cosigning H. Res. 333 calling for the impeachment of Vice President Richard B. Cheney.
While a member of the Minnesota House, Keith Ellison initiated a resolution to impeach both President George W. Bush and Cheney despite knowing it would not succeed due to the then-majority held by the GOP. This was an act of integrity.
While running for Congress, Keith Ellison spoke out strongly and unflinchingly in favor of impeachment at a rally in Loring Park our organization held on October 5th, 2006 without hesitation nor fear of it affecting his electability adversely. It didn't. He won handily, as he should have and he will even more clearly this fall.
Every time Rep. Ellison has been asked in an interview over the past year about his support of impeachment proceedings he has clearly and without hesitation reiterated his position against the chronic corruption and pervasively illegal activities of this worst-ever White House administration.
In an American Research Group Poll conducted last July, 54% of Americans were found to favor impeachment hearings beginning against Cheney. That means that 100% of "The Left" and 4% of the moderate "Right" at that time favored calling to account and publicly investigating this administration's "soft fascism" – as Presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) calls it.
Just prior to the mid-term elections of November, 2006, editor and publisher of "The Conservative" magazine and former Presidential candidate Pat Buchanan called true conservatives to vote against all Republicans who were in alignment with Bush policies.
In less than two weeks and with a nearly pervasive corporate media blackout, Rep Robert Wexler (D-FL) has gathered nearly 173,000 signatures (now over 177,000) calling for the impeachment of Cheney as of today:
Add your name here: www.wexlerwantshearings.com
Six-term Congressman Wexler is a member of the House Judiciary Committee along with Ellison, where impeachment proceedings would be initiated. Over 50% of the Democratic members of the HJC have either cosigned H. Res. 333 or Wexler's letter calling for impeachment or both. With a strong majority in the HJC held by the Democrats, we may be very close to hearings at long last.
Prior to Rep. Ellison cosigning 333, I personally had the privilege of speaking in front of the monthly DFL Central Committee meeting and calling for a resolution to encourage Ellison to cosign 333. The resolution was passed nearly unanimously with only one negative vote among the 40 or so in attendance. Rep. Ellison was acting consistently with a stance he has held for years with regard to the Bush Administration – not willing to be complicit by inaction with their crimes and misdemeanors. Rep. Ellison also showed himself to be in touch with the opinions and will of his constituency as shown by the DFL Central Committee vote and our organization's experience in tabling and lobbying Minnesota's 5th District residents over the past few years which has made clear to us that the vast majority of the Minneapolis electorate are strongly in favor of impeachment of both Cheney and Bush.
I strongly encourage you to reconsider the use of such misleading phrases as "far left". Can 54% of the American people and perhaps as many as 65-70% or even higher of Minnesota 5th District voters fit into your definition of "far left"?
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