KUCHINICH ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT

You know you are a political junkie if you can watch C-Span for hours straight, which I have been known to do. But to watch for three hours while a team of House clerks struggle to read through the twenty pages of Articles of Impeachment offered by Representative Dennis Kuchinich was both torturous and breathtaking.

Breathtaking in that I believe some, if not most of the charges to be true. Although certainly not all of the charges constitute or necessitate a call for impeachment (as was the case when Kuchinich offered up articles of impeachment for Dick Cheney last year), they do add up to quite a record for a sitting administration, and I for one, am glad he got them on the record.

With barely a whisper of a mention in Washington or the mainstream media, Kucinich undertook yet another "tilting at windmills" moment, an effort as futile as they were brazen and courageous. Kuchinich continues to hear the beat of a different drummer for good or bad, but under parliamentary law, he is allowed to have his efforts be heard, then, like the Cheney impeachment effort last year, be silently shelved away to the Judiciary committee who will use them as coasters.

For those wishing to see the entire twenty page document, go to http://www.c-span.org/. For those unwilling to wade through the verbiage, here are the highlights in my view.

All of them start by saying

"In his conduct while President of the United States, George W, Bush, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of the Presidency, and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the constitution........ has both personally and acting through agents and subordinates, together with the Vice President, illegally ........then the charges.

1. Creating a secret propaganda campaign to manufacture a false case for war against Iraq

"illegally spent public dollars to manufacture a false cause for war with Iraq. The DOD has engaged in a years-long secret domestic propaganda campaign to promote the invasion and occupation of Iraq"

2. Falsely, systematically, and with criminal intent conflating the attacks of 9/11 with misrepresentation of Iraq as an imminent security threat as part of a fraudulent justification for a war of aggression.

3. Misleading the American people and members of Congress to believe Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, so as to manufacture a false case for war.

"executed a calculated and wide ranging strategy to deceive the citizens and Congress into believing that the nation of Iraq possessed WMD's in order to justify the use of American Armed Forces against Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests., thereby interfering with and obstructing Congress' lawful functions of overseeing foreign affairs and declaring war."

4. Misleading the American people and members of Congress to believe that Iraq posed an immanent threat to the United States

5. Illegally misspending funds to secretly begin a war off aggression

6. Illegal invasion of Iraq in violation of the requirements of H.J. Res. 114

7. Invading Iraq absent a declaration of war

8. Invading Iraq, a sovereign nation, in violation of the U.N. charter and international criminal law

9. Failing to provide troops with body armor and vehicle armor

10. falsifying accounts of U.S. troop deaths and injuries for political purposes

11. Establishment of permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq

12. Initiating a war against Iraq for control of that nation's natural resources

13. Creating a secret task force to develop energy and military policies with respect to Iraq and other countries

14. Misprision of a felony, misuse and exposure of classified information and obstruction of justice in the matter of Valerie Plame Wilson, clandestine agent of the CIA (anti-whistle blower)

15 Providing immunity from prosecution for criminal contractors in Iraq

16. Reckless misspending and waste of US tax dollars in connection with Iraq contractors

17. Illegal detention: detaining indefinitely and without charge, persons both U.S. citizens and foreign captives

18. Torture: secretly authorizing, and encouraging the use of torture against captives in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other places, as a matter of official policy

19. Rendition" kidnapping people and taking them to "black sites" located in other nations, including nations known to practice torture

20. Imprisoning children

21. Misleading Congress and the American people about the threat from Iran, and supporting terrorist organizations within Iran, with the goal of overthrowing the Iranian government

22. Creating secret laws

23. Violation of the Posse Comitatus act

24. Spying on the American citizens without a court ordered warrant, in violation of the law, and the forth amendment

25. Directing the telecommunications companies to create a database of the private telephone numbers and e-mails of private citizens

26. Announcing the intent to violate laws with signing statements, then violating those laws

27. Failure to comply with Congressional subpoenas

28. Tampering with free and fair elections, corruption of the administration of justice

29. Conspiracy to violate the voting rights act of 1965

30. Misleading the American people and Congress in an attempt to destroy medicare

31. Katrina: failure to plan for the predicted disaster of hurricane Katrina, failure to respond to a civil emergency

32. Misleading Congress and the American people, systematically undermining efforts to address global warming

33. Obstruction of investigations into the attacks of September 11, 2001

"the 9/11 commission asked the president to testify before the commission. He refused to testify except for one hour in private with only two commission members, with no oath administered, with no note taking and no recording of any kind, and only with the Vice President by his side"

34. Endangering the health of the 9/11 first responders

I should bring up the following phrases, which immediately follow each charge and justification...

"In all these actions and decisions, President George W. Bush has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as President, and subversive of constitutional government, to the prejudice of the cause of law and justice and to the manifest injury of the people of the United States. Wherefore, President George W. Bush, by such conduct, is guilty of an impeachable offense warranting removal from office."

US Constitution. Article II, Sec. 4 states that:
"The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."

The crimes of Treason and Bribery are fairly straightforward. But what are "high Crimes and Misdemeanors"? The framers of the Constitution deliberately borrowed this phrase from English parliamentary law. It was first used in 1386 to impeach the King's Chancellor. Michael de le Pole, Earl of Suffolk. He broke a promise to parliament regarding improvements in the King's Estate and also failed to pay ransom money for the town of Ghent.

Alexander Hamilton described the subject of impeachment as:
"those offences which proceed from the misconduct of public men, or, in other words, from the abuse or violation of some public trust. They are of a nature which may with peculiar propriety be denominated POLITICAL, as they relate chiefly to injuries done immediately to the society itself."

Obviously, the political climate these days in Washington are such that they will not touch this hot potato and let King George II serve out his full second term without incident. But, what does it say for our regard for the law, not to mention the constitution, when we refuse to prosecute for wrongs committed against the public good?

This liaisez faire attitude towards the many misdeeds of the current administration is creating a virtual "E" ticket to all those who follow them in office. You will not be prosecuted. You will hardly even be questioned. Worse yet, we will enable your behavior, and condone your efforts to cover up your mis-deeds.

I agree the prudent thing to do is to let this go and concentrate on the dire matters at hand. Dire matters at hand, by the by....that were the sole creation of the present administration. He has created a situation and atmosphere so grave to our country, through malfeasance and cold calculation, that it would be unwise to waste time prosecuting for them.