Kucinich Introduces Bush Impeachment Resolution

WASHINGTON — Rep. Dennis Kucinich, a former Democratic presidential contender, said Monday he wants the House to consider a resolution to impeach President Bush.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi consistently has said impeachment was "off the table."

Kucinich, D-Ohio, read his proposed impeachment language in a floor speech. He contended Bush deceived the nation and violated his oath of office in leading the country into the Iraq war.

Kucinich introduced a resolution last year to impeach Vice President Dick Cheney. That resolution was killed, but only after Republicans initially voted in favor of taking up the measure to force a debate.

Kucinich won 50 percent of the vote in a five-way House Democratic primary in March, beating back critics who said he ignored business at home to travel the country in his quest to be president.

Click here for the text of the articles of impeachment. (PDF file)

Comments

[RTIII]

I thought there was some talk of his having a PRIVILEGED motion. That means they can't table it. But I didn't see anything on that in either this report or the one at the other end of the link...

Anybody know about that?

[comebackid]

San Francisco,

I don't care who you marry. I don't care how much pot you smoke or how many flower arrangements you display at the town hall. Really I don't care. I'm not being sarcastic here, live and let live but please oh please don't send that awful woman Pelosi back to Washington. She is an embarrassment to you and a national disgrace.

[eternalkerri]

wow.

I was about to blow this one off as a rogue Democrat being a nutter. These articles of Impeachment are actually well put together, and pretty strong. They pull out some items that I was not aware of.

K ucinich actually puts forth a VERY strong case.

[RTIII]

And that's even before the formal investigation that's supposed to be a part of the impeachment process! This is just a SUMMARY!

[JennyJay]

Nixon did far less than Bush/Cheney - - - and they started impeachment against him. But back
in the old days our senate and congress had a lot more COJONES than the whimps do now. Lets vote em all out and start all over again.

I used to like Pelosi - - - NOT ANY MORE! Isn't the word "justice" in their dang dictionary????

[Sina]

Bravo, Dennis Kucinich! ! All I would add here is a war crimes tribunal to follow the impeachment. It's only fair. We have a democracy to reclaim. If not us, then who?

[RTIII]

If not now, when?

[johnnydajogger]

The New York Times buried this story. One had to search hard to find the one paragraph blurb. As usual, it devoted the issue to fluff and superficial nonsense while ignoring real issues.

[KeysDan]

Mrs. Pelosi's response to Congressman Kucinich's impeachment resolution was to pooh-pooh it, once again. It, she claims, would be divisive and may not be successful--this statement along with the previous "off the table" comment are singularly obtuse. The Democrats are in the majority in the House and control the House Judiciary Committee. Only a majority is necessary to vote articles of impeachment. Yes, it would be very difficult to reach the 67 senate votes necessary to convict by that second body,the senate, but success is not necessarily, conviction. Besides, the penalty for conviction is removal from office and that will happen shortly anyway. Success, at this point, is treating the injury inflicted upon the constitution by Bush/Cheney and to provide a warning to any future rogue presidents. The impeachment investigation is the critical part, to delve further into the apparent and known offenses without executive privilege being invoked or subpoenas being ignored-- a part of the constitutional impeachment process. Who knows, when all the misdemeanors and high crimes are laid out, the 67 senate votes may not be hard to find.

[provgrays]

You're right.

Others would find their voices once the process of impeachment began, but Pelosi is a traitor because she has refused to carry out her Constitutionally mandated duty to impeach. She also took an oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.

Thanks to her and others, it's just a faded piece of parchment in the National Archives.

[fiberoptimist]

Well said. With all the dirty laundry that would come out of impeachment hearings, the Repubicans might decide to just throw these goons under the bus, or force them to resign just to get it over with. There's no telling where it could lead.

Pelosi - show some strength and conviction. Is it your intention to just give them carte blanch to do whatever they want for the rest of their term? Nuke Iran? Wiretap Obama? Extraordinary rendition Harry Reid? Where does it end? Stop playing politics with the constitution and do your sworn duty!!!

[RTIII]

Apparently, yes. -sigh-

[JohnnyBasic]

I just called my local representative (Rep. Michael Capuano of MA).

I was told the vote took place today and he voted for it to go to committee. I have no clue what this means. The woman on the phone tried to explain, but did not do a good job.

Is this a vote for or against the resolution?

Thanks.

[RTIII]

It's a non-vote.

In committee, it CAN come out of the committee with a recommendation to go forward, BUT, it's not necessary for it to go to committee. This is a way for the speaker to table the matter without appearing to table the matter. This is the way you slow down legislation you don't like without having outright killed it.

[Hastings]

Yawnnnnn. Oh, I'm sorry. What is this fool doing now?

[VicPerry]

I know, living up to his responsibilities as a congressman. Bo-ring. Why aren't there any good Paris Hilton stories anymore?

[Soothsayer08]

You can believe that if it was a Democratic president the Republicans would have already impeached him. Grow some cohones Dems!

[torrrep]

Yeah libs. You talk the talk but you walk like ducks.

[provgrays]

Yeah, torrrep.

You guys walk like lame ducks.

[RTIII]

Torrrep,

it's NOT "libs" that are the problem, it's NANCY PELOSI. She's no "liberal." OK, so she's for a woman's right to choose, etc, that doesn't make you "liberal" or "progressive."

Nancy is a member of the DLC - the evil part of the Democratic Party. They're the Democrats who Love Corporations. Virtually every member of the DLC needs to be removed from office.

REMEMBER THIS COME NOVEMBER.

[Brettster]

Why is this story tucked way at the bottom of Huffpost? I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but it is bizarre the way the media, and even outlets like this, are avoiding what should be a monumental story. These are 35 valid, clear, legitimate, articles of impeachment with exhaustive legal backup. We should be carrying this guy around on our shoulders in a national parade. He is a true hero. THIS IS WHAT WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR AND YOU'RE DELIBERATELY SCOFFING IT OFF!! I understand it won't go through, but we should at least give it as much attention as it deserves. He summed it up the way NOBODY has had the courage to do. These crimes have made millions of us outraged in a way we've never been in our lives, and feeling helpless and hopeless as everybody seemed to willingly let them get away with it.

[LenoDisruptors]

You DEFINITELY do not have to be a conspiracy theorist to notice. I can't see it anywhere on TalkingPointsMemo, either. And do you think MoveOn.org has sent out an email to members about it? I'm a member, just because I'm a member of virtually any anti-war group that takes action, and you bet that MoveOn is going to remain silent on this. Because these so-called liberals tow the party line rather than focus on the actual issues and think for themselves, and the higher-ups in the Democratic Party don't want to deal with the impeachment issue despite the overwhelming, abundant, irrefutable evidence that this president is the biggest criminal we've ever had in the White House. They are hiding their heads in their sand, just like various parties hid their heads in their sand while Hitler was coming to power and kept thinking if they pretended he wasn't doing all these bad things, he'd just go away. Even HuffPo, which should, for ex., be analyzing the 35 articles of impeachment -- how about some opeds on THAT??? -- instead talks about stuff that is almost as trivial as the mainstream media talks about. WHO CARES ABOUT OBAMA'S SEARCH FOR A V-P? Let him go ahead, when he's found one, that'll be a news story. In the meantime, THERE'S A MASS-MURDERER in the White House!!!

[freebeer]

rawstory is giving this good coverage
http://rawstory.com/news08/2008/06/11/kucinich-judiciary-committee-must-begin-review-of-impeachment-articles/

Pelosi, senior Democratic party leadership, Obama and Huffpost are against impeachment for Bush the criminal. Disgusting.

[saltpeter]

If this story caught traction from the public (as it should because it is in keeping with the public perception of major wrongdoing on the part of the Bush Administration) the Democratic leadership would have issued these articles a year ago. The media can only stand to cover one major political story at a time and impeachment didn't fit cozily alongside of the beefed up "horse race" narrative of the election. Too many pundits and too much of the public wants to look forward but is unwilling to address the very nasty business conducted in our name in the recent past and in the very real present. If this administration walks away without any punishment for their role of deliberately wiping their feet with the Constitution, then the future will not be as cheery as everyone seems to think it will be. The lack of motivation on the part of the Democratic leadership to impugn those who have broke the law time and again for mere political gain and as a part of imperialist enterprise in the guise of national security will only lead future adminsitrations to think that they go deeper with their Constitutional trespasses without fear of legal ramifications.

From Huffpo to the MSM, they get on with their little storyline about change and ignore Kucinish's attempts at viewing the BIGGER PICTURE. There is NO CHANGE if the culture of Washington still thinks it is above the law.

[RTIII]

What you're talking about is a tripple point catch-22. There won't be media coverage without public outrage. There won't be public outrage if there isn't public awareness. There won't be public awareness without media coverage.

Therefore, the problem is the media since they have choice in the matter and can fix it.

[wm1066]

Pelosi could have used the threat of impeachment as a barganing tool early on but she told the president it was off the table. And that severely weaked her ability to fight Bush.
She needs to be taken out as Speaker and replaced with someone who can get things done.
Pelosi has given Bush everything he has wanted.

[LenoDisruptors]

Hear hear, Pelosi should be removed. Impeachment is ALWAYS on the table; she apparently can't read (the Constitution.) Meanwhile, any fear that Bush had when the Democrats took over Congress has obviously dissipated. He threatens almost on a daily basis to attack Iran, unprovoked, because he has gotten away with attacking and occupying Iraq and no-one has ever prosecuted him for lying about the war!! The neocons never want to leave Iraq; listen to what the Iraqi government is saying. The U.S. is not making plans to withdraw or step back from authority over it, quite the opposite. BECAUSE CONGRESS HAS DONE NOTHING TO ENFORCE THE WILL OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, who are overwhelmingly against the war, and who think -- in polls that are willing to ask-- that Bush has abused his power.
***GO TO WWW.HOUSE.GOV and look up your congressperson, tell them this insanity has gone on long enough, and for them to wait and idly hope, when they have the chance to actually stop these madmen bent on attacking Iran, is completely unacceptable; tell them to vote for this resolution. Then look up House Judiciary Chair John Conyers Jr. via the same site, and tell him to start the impeachment hearings, already!!!! To ignore Kucinich's resolution is a horrific insult to the intelligence and to the concerns of the American people.

[mellene]

I watched Jonathan Turley on Olbermann talk about the need for this to happen. Too bad the rest of the media laughs this off as nonsense. The degree to which the big corporations scoff at the Constitution is unbelievable. We need a Congress and administration that will once again value this doctrine and not spit on it.

[SaulGood]

you mean like a guy that taught constitutional law? oh, he!! to the yeah!!

[torrrep]

Teaching constitutional law doesn't mean much if you don't know how many states are in the union.

[dansama]

F* the lapel pins, Kucinich is a real patriot!!! Where are all those GOP congressmen who railed against Clinton and pushed for his impeachment with lofty speaches about rule of law and patriotic duty? Talk about your summer time patriots every member of congress and the senate took the same oath, to protect and server the Constitution, not their party or their re-election. If you haven't already donate to Kucinich's re-election campaign as well as Waxman's and the others that are standing up to these fascists and call your congressmen and get let them know impeachment is on the table and Bush should be behind bars.

[Beaux510]

Who the FUCK is Nancy Pelosi to say "Impeachment off the table"? Is she the Queen or some other higher power that gets to issue politcal "fatwas" that can't be disobeyed? No. She is an elected official, a representative of a constituency, and as Speaker a respresentative of an even larger constituency. If "she won't allow it" maybe it's time to find someone else who will not only allow it, but pursue it with vigor and righteous conviction.

Once again it's obvious. Time to FLUSH, twice.

[lobear00]

Nancy is one of many Democrats who's sitting on Bushes left side protecting him because she is a part of the crimes commited by Bush.

[RTIII]

Here's the political calculus - I know because I walked the streets of S.F. to try and defeat Nancy in the Democratic primary two weeks ago tomorrow...

Some people in S.F. HATE her policies, but LOVE the fact that she's speaker. I've talked with a few people who were brave enough to say they still want Pelosi because they think she'll bring good things to S.F. in particular.

OTOH, many people were unaware there was even a primary going on or that Nancy had any competition - this because THE MEDIA SHUT OUT HER COMPETITION! There was only one news story throughout the campaign that covered EITHER person - it covered both - the sunday before the election, but it was a small newspaper...

... When I encountered people with a moment to talk, most said they'd vote for Nancy's competition without even knowing who the competition is...