Dennis Kucinich will introduce privileged resolution to force a vote on V.P. Cheney’s impeachment resolution this week, probably Tuesday. It is critical that we voice our support and contact our Representatives ASAP to let them know how we feel.

However, he is reaching out to us, the American people, to do our part and claim responsibility to reclaim our constitutional democracy. Dennis understands that real change and meaningful reform can’t happen without the active support of the people, and so he will be holding a live, national conference call Monday evening, November 5th, to explain how everything will work and what we can do to help. From the Kucinich campaign website:

Dennis will host a live, nationwide conference call on  Monday, November 5th, beginning at about 7:30 p.m. (Eastern Time), to announce what will be happening in the House of Representatives this week regarding the Cheney impeachment resolution – and to ask for your help.

The call-in number is (641) 715-3300.
When the operator asks for an access code, key in 324341#.
The call is  open to all interested citizens.

The time to act is now. We have to contact our Representatives to gain support. We have to contact the Democratic leadership and explain that no part of our Constituion, including impeachment, is “off the table”.

Off the table!? It is important to note why Kucinich is moving this forward: there is wide popular support for it! Over 80 cities/towns have now passed impeachment resolutions, with 50 more pending, and major polls, such as Zogby, have indicated a majority of Americans support impeachment proceedings. However, the Democratic leadership, members of Congress, and the MSM have failed to listen to the American people. As Kucinich noted at the San Mateo Straw Poll:

“If Congress did the right thing, they would be talking … about impeachment…

“I introduced House Resolution 333 because I heard from the American people and they said they wanted some response to make Dick Cheney accountable for the statements that he made that took us into a war based on lies. And the statements he made that would take us into a conflict against Iran. Again, more lies.

“The President is now openly invoking the specter of World War III with respect to Iran. He ought to be held accountable also. I’m the only member of Congress who stepped forward on the issue of making Dick Cheney accountable. And now we have 21 members who’ve joined me. That’s a step in the right direction. But I’m going to go beyond that. I’m going to call a privileged resolution, at which point, would force a vote — at least if it’s only on a procedural motion — members are going to have to confront this issue of impeachment. They’re not going to escape it. This is a question of defending our Constitution. It really is.

Just as our Congressional Representatives have gone deaf to the voice of millions of Americans, we, like the Constitution, have gone dumb to this Administration. And Kucinich understands this:

“Despite this groundswell of opposition to the unconstitutional conduct of office, Vice President Cheney continues to violate the U.S. Constitution by insisting the power of the executive branch is supreme.

“Congress must hold the Vice President accountable. The American people need to let Members of Congress know how they feel about this. The Vice President continues to use his office to advocate for a continued occupation of Iraq and prod our nation into a belligerent stance against Iran. If the Vice President is successful, his actions will ensure decades of disastrous consequences.”

So here we are. Kucinich is giving us a chance to let Congress know how we feel, while holding them and this Administration accountable for their actions. There will be a vote. People will have to make a decision. People will have to take action. And we who believe in the principles of this country have to act first. This is our country, our government and our consequences if we stand idly by.

Call your Representatives here. Call the Democratic Leadership here. Call in to the conference call tommorow night. Recommend, Digg, pass along this diary and raise your voices. There isn’t much time. 

Articles of Impeachment against V.P. Cheney:

1.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States by fabricating a threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

2.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States about an alleged relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda in order to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

3.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has openly threatened aggression against the Republic of Iran absent any real threat to the United States, and done so with the United States proven capability to carry out such threats, thus undermining the national security of the United States

Kucinich’s list of supporting documents are here.

Co-sponsors for Articles of Impeachment:

H. Res. 333, Articles of Impeachment against the Vice President, has 21 cosponsors. They are: Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Robert Brady (D-PA), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN), Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA), Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA), Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), Rep. Henry Johnson (D-GA), Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA), Rep. James Moran (D-VA), Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ), Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-NY), Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), Rep. Diane Watson (D-CA), Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) and Rep. Albert Wynn (D-MD).

The latest Rasmussen poll in New Hampshire shows Dennis Kucinich in fourth place, tied with Bill Richardson at 7%. This shouldn’t come as such a surprise, however.

First, Kucinich has already been tied with Richardson in various national polls, such as Rasmussen, Fox, Diego/Hotline. It’s really been the early states, like Iowa and New Hampshire that Kucinich has been significantly behind in the polls, a result of the intense money being spent in those states. 

But, second, and more significantly, the Kucinich Campaign has been actively working with leadership in the Independent voting community. Jim Mangia, head of Independent Voice, who has been instrumental in introducing Kucinich to other Independents working to reform the political process; meetings with leaders in the national movement like Linda Curtis, director of Independent Texans, and Jacqueline Salit, executive editor of The Neo-Independent magazine and president of the Committee for a Unified Independent Party, which:

mounts political, legal, legislative and organizing challenges to partisan control of the political process. It has pioneered methods of organizing independents without a political party, creating independent voter associations to project the voice of the 35% of the electorate that considers itself independent.

As I posted before, two weeks ago, Kucinich met with and addressed a few hundred Independents in New Hampshire, at a conference sponsored by the New Hampshire Association of Independent Voters, where he received an overwhelmingly positive response. To cheers and rounds of applause he stated:

“The Democrats have learned nothing since 2006,” he said. “Back then, the Democrats promised that if they were put back in control (of the House and Senate) that the war in Iraq would end. Now (estimates) predict there won’t be an end until at least 2013.”

“I want a Democratic party that’s responsive to the needs of all Americans . . . (politicians) shouldn’t be called upon to be loyal to one political party, we’re elected to be loyal to something with much more power – the Constitution.”

As Independents are largely a growing number of dissafected Republicans and Democrats seeking genuine political reform, ending the domination of special interests groups in the political process, and positioning themselves aggressively against this war/occupation, Kucinich is the Democrat who can best mobilize these votes in the primary and general election.

Independent voters, who now make up between 35%-42% of the electorate, have nearly grown into the majority in New Hampshire. As Jacqueline Salit noted at the conference:

registered independents in New Hampshire, for instance, have increased from about 28 percent of total voters several years ago to roughly 45 percent today…

“Why are so many (voters) becoming independents?” Salit asked. “Because by declaring ourselves independents, we’re saying we don’t like what the political parties are doing to our country.

These are the voters who are willing to take a stand. These are the voters who will not be told who is or is not electable. These are the voters that could well decide this election, and could well decide it for Kucinich.

Electability is not a fixed characteristic of a candidate, it doesn’t exist in a vaccuum. It’s easy to dismiss a candidate polling at 2-3% as unelectable. All one does is point to the polls to effectively undermine any other argument. This, further, provides the media with an excuse to not cover voices like Kucinich, creating a viscious cycle that virtually ensures the polling to remain low.

And this has been Kucinich’s major obstacle. It is the first 10-15% that is critical. Once you get there the myth of electability is no longer tenable, forcing more media coverage, exposing more voters, pushing the polls still higher, and opening the door for every Democrat who has ever said, “I like Dennis Kucinich, but…”

So, get ready, America. At 7% we’re half way there in New Hampshire!

John Nichols, writing for “The Nation”, has just written a kind of intellectual “call to arms” regarding, what is quite possibly, the most important issue facing the United States right now: Iran.

Those echoes that Americans are hearing in the noisy-and-getting-noisier debate about Iran are from 2002 and 2003, when members of the current administration were busy spinning the fantasy that the United States needed to attack Iraq.

George “Uranium From Africa” Bush sure sounds like he wants to attack Iran. Just last week, the president said, “I’ve told people that if you’re interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them (Iran) from (obtaining) the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon.”

Dick “Greeted As Liberators” Cheney sure sounds like he wants to attack Iran. This week, the vice president declared: “Our country, and the entire international community, cannot stand by as a terror-supporting state fulfills its grandest ambitions.”

Secretary of State Condoleezza “Mushroom Clouds” Rice sure sounds like she wants to attack Iran. “Unfortunately the Iranian government continues to spurn our offer of open negotiations, instead threatening peace and security by pursuing nuclear technologies that can lead to a nuclear weapon…” Rice said on Thursday, as she announced drastic new sanctions against the country that serious analysts say poses little threat to its neighbors and no real threat to the U.S.

Astutely pointing out the similarities to the pre-war spin on Iraq, to his credit, Nichols has the integrity to go further and point us towards the one and only Democratic candidate possessing both credibility and leadership on Iraq and Iran:

And, as in 2002 and early 2003, the most rational response is coming from Congressman Dennis Kucinich, the Ohio Democrat who says, “After the lies and deception used to lead us to war in Iraq, the belligerent Bush Administration cannot be given leeway with statements that suggest a preemptive attack on Iran is necessary,” says Kucinich, a candidate for the Democratic presidential nod who deserves a much better hearing that he has been afforded so far by the media and Democratic power brokers. “We are systematically destroying every available route to restoring peace and security in the Middle East,” he adds.

As Kucinich is the only candidate to oppose the invasion from the beginning and consistently oppose the occupation in its entirety, and further been willing to lead on Iran throughout his campaign, Nichols assesment is dead on.

“He’s right”, Nichols states, only to follow with sad lamentation and ominous warning:

But being right is not always enough in tenuous times.

Being heard is what matters.

And so, to his credit, Nichols is doing his part in enabling Kucinich’s voice of clarity to be heard. Will we listen?

If the prospect of a further aggressive action without legitimacy isn’t enough, consider Nichols’ fundamental argument in the closing of his short essay:

The point here is not a political one… This is about the most fundamental question in a democracy: At a time when talk of war is growing louder, will we hear a real debate or merely the exaggerated echoes of those who have never gotten anything right?

The answer could well be measured by the extent to which Dennis Kucinich and those who stood with him in 2002 and 2003 are afforded the forums that their record of having been able to cut through the spin of the past should afford them in the present.

Nichols is not soliciting votes, supporting Kucinich’s Campaign or endorsing him for our highest office, however, he has managed to isolate the essential basis for all three. Kucinich’s candidacy is nothing less than our opportunity to reclaim our Country and its Democratic Principles in total. Will we accept?

Tuesday night in a nationwide phone call organized by Progressive Democrats of America, Dennis Kucinich reportedly announced:

he will go before the U.S. House of Representatives on a point of personal privilege to move the impeachment of Dick Cheney.  Mr. Kucinich stated he will bring the impeachment forward before Thanksgiving.

Kucinich introduced articles of impeachment against Vice President, Dick Cheney, back in April. H.R. 333 consists of three articles of impeachment, with supporting examples:

1.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States by fabricating a threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

2.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States about an alleged relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda in order to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

3.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has openly threatened aggression against the Republic of Iran absent any real threat to the United States, and done so with the United States proven capability to carry out such threats, thus undermining the national security of the United States

Kucinich also provided roughly 50 supporting documents for the articles, on his Congressional website.

Over 80 cities/towns have now passed impeachment resolutions, with 50 more pending, and major polls, such as Zogby, have indicated a majority of Americans support impeachment proceedings. However, the MSM and members of Congress have failed to listen to the American people.

H.R. 333 has picked up 21 cosponsors, far short of what is needed to start proceedings, and House Speaker Pelosi has continually insisted that impeachment is “off the table”.

But, as Kucinich holds nothing higher than his duties to defend the Constitution and represent the people of the United States, Kucinich is making sure that it gets back on. when asked about the Congress’ failures to protect the Constituion, at the San Mateo Presidential Straw Poll, Kucinich replied:

“If Congress did the right thing, they would be talking … about impeachment…

“I introduced House Resolution 333 because I heard from the American people and they said they wanted some response to make Dick Cheney accountable for the statements that he made that took us into a war based on lies. And the statements he made that would take us into a conflict against Iran. Again, more lies.

“The President is now openly invoking the specter of World War III with respect to Iran. He ought to be held accountable also. I’m the only member of Congress who stepped forward on the issue of making Dick Cheney accountable. And now we have 21 members who’ve joined me. That’s a step in the right direction. But I’m going to go beyond that. I’m going to call a privileged resolution, at which point, would force a vote — at least if it’s only on a procedural motion — members are going to have to confront this issue of impeachment. They’re not going to escape it. This is a question of defending our Constitution. It really is.“

Kucinich proves yet again his courage and leadership in Representative Democracy against fear and political calculation. He proves that he will not play party politics if it is against the interests of the United States and American citizens. He proves, again, his credentials for holding our highest office. Support Dennis Kucinich!

Why? Well, for starters because we are approaching 4,000 dead U.S. Soldiers and have wasted over a trillion of the tax payers dollars. If it there’s anything worse than those considerations it’s the outrageous losses in Iraq: estimates of over a million Iraqi deaths and over 3 million displaced refugees.

Why isn’t it George Bush’s War? Because it isn’t even a war any longer, it’s an occupation; an occupation that steals the future wealth of the Iraqi people by privatzing their oil and reconstruction, an occupation that partitions their country and increases volatility, destabalizes the region and inflames American resentment; an occupation that enriches and empowers multinational companies and mercenaries,  undermines America’s international standing and security at home, and acts as strategic position for more aggressive actions in the region.

Why isn’t this George Bush’s War? Because he is our Representative. The crisis in Iraq is mine, yours, his and hers; ours, as Americans and theirs, as Iraqis to Iranians to Israelis to just about anyone who is affected: a long list. Sorry, Mrs. Clinton and frontunners, this involves the whole country and we need to take action now. Sorry, Mrs. Pelosi and too many Congressional members, it’s our problem and we need to reassert Congressional authority where the Constitution has granted it. No more politics. No more games.

Let’s be clear, however. George Bush has a very large share of responsibility. I’m not writing this to vindicate him. He is certainly blameworthy for many decisions leading us here. These were his plans, his deceptions and his corruptions. But, then again, I’m not vindicating Clinton and Edwards either for not reading the NIE, or along with Obama, their consistent funding of the war and subsequent occupation, silence on the Oil Privatization and weak leadership in ending this conflict. On the contrary, I’m talking about responsibility and leadership here.

It’s time to accept responsibility for every death, every bullet, every dollar involved in Iraq as ours. It’s a proposition as weighty and profound as one can imagine, a dark and dreary idea that most don’t seem ready to accept, as many times as I hear “Bush”. Really, I can only imagine someone like Sartre not blushing. But, with this heavy responsibility comes a great power: We will end this disaster in Iraq!

As we finally accept this as our problem (“our” being President, Congress, citizens, etc.) we will no longer depend upon others to provide the solution. We will no longer wait for the President to change course, or the congress to “get enough votes”. We will act now as we are able to. And what is the only way to end this occupation now? No more money. Congress as a representative of the 70% of Americans who want to end this conflict now, will not offer a bill to the President for further action.

The power of the purse is soley the authority of Congress and it is the only way we will end this conflict now, rather than 2013 or later. The Congress does not offer legislation for continuing military action, but will allow appropriation to safely withdraw U.S. troops in a timely fashion, upon consultation and recomendation of the military. It is that simple. No 2/3 majority. No veto. Done. Bush can’d do anything and if Republicans tried to enact legislation, the Democrats (who virtually all say they are against the war but don’t have the votes to overide the veto) fillibuster to block it, for which they only need 41 votes to do and which they surely have. Please read here, here and here.

Needless to say, the Democrats have not been telling us about this, but rather hiding behind the troops or just misleading us about not haveing the votes. However, Dennis Kucinich has been a lone exception throughout the campaign. Just as Kucinich lead the effort to opposing the vote for war originally (actually citing the faulty intelligence), 100% voted against funding it, spoke out alone against the Oil Privatization, as well as aggressive action against Iran, Kucinich has lead here as well. Time and time again he has told us what the others would not: that we can end this war whenever we have the will.

After cutting off funding, Kucinich’s plan for ending the occupation, H.R. 1234, incorporates a plan for a safe withdraw of U.S. troops, who are then replaced with an international peacekeeping force to stabalize the region. The national Oil and reconstruction contracts will be given back to Iraqis, as the U.S. engages in multilateral regional negotiations for long term solutions. It is the most reasonable and most practical plan. After all, what is inflaming the violent insurgency, but the occupation?

Kucinich has taken up the leadership here as he has on other issues. He is offering an active plan and immediate steps toward a solution. Kucinich is claiming his responsibility. We need to do the same.