Tuesday, January 31, 2006

 

Day 45 and Counting

Tonight is the State of the Union, and the ACLU has some good ideas about it:

Thursday, January 26, 2006

 

Day 40 and Counting

For the latest admission of an impeachable offense by the President of the United States, see the following Q & A from President Bush's Press Conference on January 26 reported by the Christian Wire Service:
Q Mr. President, though -- this is a direct follow up to that -- the FISA law was implemented in 1978 in part because of revelations that the National Security Agency was spying domestically. What is wrong with that law if you feel you have to circumvent it and, as you just admitted, expand presidential power?

THE PRESIDENT: May I -- if I might, you said that I have to circumvent it. There -- wait a minute. That's a -- there's something -- it's like saying, you know, you're breaking the law. I'm not. See, that's what you've got to understand. I am upholding my duty, and at the same time, doing so under the law and with the Constitution behind me. That's just very important for you to understand.

Secondly, the FISA law was written in 1978. We're having this discussion in 2006. It's a different world. And FISA is still an important tool. It's an important tool. And we still use that tool. But also -- and we -- look -- I said, look, is it possible to conduct this program under the old law? And people said, it doesn't work in order to be able to do the job we expect us to do.

And so that's why I made the decision I made. And you know, "circumventing" is a loaded word, and I refuse to accept it, because I believe what I'm doing is legally right.

FISA is not the OLD law, it's the CURRENT LAW that Bush has again admitted to breaking! How many times does this scofflaw have to say "I did it!" before the Republican Congress takes action?

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

 

Day 38 and Counting

Today's best article is ''What the President Ordered in This Case Was a Crime" by John Nichols, which describes what Representative John Conyers has been doing to keep the impeachment ball rolling in the House Judiciary Committee. As the article makes clear, the true responsibilty to go forward rests with the Committee Chairman, Republican Representative James Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin.
As the chair of the Judiciary Committee, Sensenbrenner has a Constitutionally-mandated responsibility to take seriously the charges of executive lawbreaking and impropriety that are currently in play. If he cannot execute this responsibility in a reasoned and bipartisan manner, then he has a duty to step aside.

"Last month all 17 House Judiciary Democrats called on Chairman Sensenbrenner to convene hearings to investigate the President's use of the National Security Agency to conduct surveillance involving U.S. citizens on U.S. soil, in apparent contravention of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. As our request has since been ignored, it is our job, as Members of Congress, to review the program and consider whether our criminal laws have been violated and our citizen's constitutional rights trampled upon," explained Conyers, who has played a critical role in investigations of wrongdoing by Democratic and Republican presidents since the days when Lyndon Johnson occupied the White House.
As the Bush administration spreads its spin to change the nature of this debate, it is essential to remember that the issue is the President's admitted violation of the law of the United States. This is a criminal issue not a political issue.

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

 

Day 32 and Counting

Another great dissertation by a group of legal scholars on the basis for impeachement can be found at ON NSA SPYING: A LETTER TO CONGRESS, which says, in part:
Although the program's secrecy prevents us from being privy to all of its details, the Justice Department's defense of what it concedes was secret and warrantless electronic surveillance of persons within the United States fails to identify any plausible legal authority for such surveillance. Accordingly the program appears on its face to violate existing law.
All of the excuses presented by Bush's defenders (including ยง 1811. Authorization during time of war) are addressed.

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

 

Day 31 and Counting

Please read Zogby Poll: Americans Support Impeaching Bush for Wiretapping by Bob Fertik. Of special interest is:
The strong support for impeachment found in this poll is especially surprising because the views of impeachment supporters are entirely absent from the broadcast and print media, and can only be found on the Internet and in street protests.
and the details of Zogby's poll of Likely Voters.

Thursday, January 12, 2006

 

Day 26 and Counting

Please read Elizabeth Holtzman's excellent piece, The Impeachment of George W. Bush, in The Nation. She lays it out both simply and persuasively, for example:

Warrantless Wiretaps
On December 17 President Bush acknowledged that he repeatedly authorized wiretaps, without obtaining a warrant, of American citizens engaged in international calls. On the face of it, these warrantless wiretaps violate FISA, which requires court approval for national security wiretaps and sets up a special procedure for obtaining it. Violation of the law is a felony.

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

 

Day 25 and Counting

Here's another in the series of ads:

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

 

Day 24 and Counting

The best reading over the weekend was Presidential Authority to Conduct Warrantless Electronic Surveillance to Gather Foreign Intelligence Information from the Congressional Research Service. It's not as easy to read as John Dean's analysis (see Day 14), but it covers every Administration argument in detail. In short, it makes an iron-clad case for immediate impeachment.

Thursday, January 05, 2006

 

Day 19 and Counting

Just in case you haven't seen this ad yet:



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