Liberals, now's your chance

Guest editorial from political writer Erin Wenz:

Some of you might not have heard that on Tuesday the House of Representatives voted to send Dennis Kucinich's motion to impeach Dick Cheney to John Conyers' House Judiciary Committee. The majority of representatives voted against tabling the motion and for sending it to Committee. If the committee, after due deliberation, decides to recommend for the motion, the matter will be debated on the floor of the House, and Articles of Impeachment could be written and presented to the Senate. Even if Cheney isn't impeached, the committee's investigation and a Congressional floor debate will reveal a LOT of stuff about what the administration has been up to.

If you haven't heard about this development, it's because the mainstream media doesn't want you to know about it. It's huge news, but the media is pretending that because the motion is now in committee, it will not be brought forward - and is therefore not worth reporting. (Isn't that convenient? If they don't report it, there is less of a chance that it will, in fact, be brought forward.)

The New York Times and CNN wrote brief stories on the topic Tuesday, both of which copped a snooty, "Well isn't that Kucinich silly" attitude. The Times article was a "LEDE" blog followed by dozens and dozens of readers' comments - most of them hostile to the Times and its condescending attitude toward this serious Constitutional matter. Callers on today's Air America Radio programs said that no other major media outlet even mentioned the motion or the debate.

The House "leadership" - Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer - would like to prove the media right, and will likely pressure the Conyers committee to simply bury the motion. The cowardly "leaders" of the "rage and cave" Democrats are afraid that an impeachment debate will put their party in a bad light with the public. They seem to be unaware of the fact that 52 percent of the American people think Cheney should impeached, and that he has a nine percent approval rating. (Nine percent!)

So it is up to us, the American people, to take the lead here. Kucinich is standing up for us and the Constitution and the rule of law. We need to back him.

Kucinich's motion to impeach is based on his assertion that Cheney lied and fabricated evidence to get us to go to war with Iraq, and is currently lying and fabricating evidence to get us to go to war with Iran. The timing of the motion is critical - stop Cheney now, or we are very likely to be at war with Iran in the near future.

Liberals have done lots of bitching about the Democratic Congress and what they have not done (end the war or impeach the Bushco criminals). Now, for once, for real, we have a chance to do something about it: pressure the Conyers mommittee to debate the motion and bring to the floor.

The media, the Republicans, and the Democratic centrists (read "corporatists") will be pressuring the committee do bury the motion. Conyers himself seems ambivalent - this all fell into his lap just yesterday afternoon, after all. (I think the success of the motion surprised everyone, even Kucinich.)

But if we the people lead, the leaders will follow. Now is the time to exercise your responsibilities as a citizen so later you can enjoy your rights. If you don't exercise your responsibilities, there will be no rights.

Don't delay - this Congressional session is over in two weeks. Contact your own congressional representative, and John Conyers, Dennis Kucinich, Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, and your local newspaper (write a letter to the editor). Let all of them know that you want the motion to impeach Dick Cheney to be brought to the floor.

If that's more than you can do, simply e-mail Kucinich. He has set up a special e-mail box at his Congressional address (impeachment@kucinich.us) and said on the radio that he will personally deliver your message to Conyers and the House leaders. My letter to Kucinich is below.

Cheney is the lynchpin of the Administration - the puppet master of George Bush. This is our chance to bring down the whole house of cards.

And PLEASE don't think that this impeachment motion doesn't have a chance of going forward. That's what everyone thought when Kucinich introduced it on the floor yesterday - that it would get 100 votes at most. Now it's before the Conyers committee.

- Erin Wenz


Erin's letter to Congressman Kucinich:

impeachment@kucinich.us

Dear Congressman Kucinich,

I applaud you for your courageous stand on the Cheney impeachment matter. With true leaders like you, American democracy still has a chance to be restored. Thank you.

Today I heard your interview on Air America Radio in which you said you would bring my message on Cheney's impeachment to the appropriate members of Congress - John Conyers, Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, and others. Here is my message:

Dear Congressional leaders,

It is illegal for Speaker Pelosi to take the impeachment of members of the administration "off the table." The Constitution requires that impeachment - meaning a trial of an Executive - be undertaken when there is sufficient evidence that there might be wrongdoing.

For Mrs. Pelosi and Mr. Hoyer to decide that impeachment is no longer an instrument of law is like a district attorney deciding that robbery will no longer be prosecuted in his or her area of jurisdiction. The district attorney cannot make that decision - his or her job is to enforce the law, not write it.

Similarly, the Congressional leaders cannot decide legally that impeachment will not be pursued under any circumstances. That not only overlooks possible past crimes and misdemeanors, it gives a green light to future wrongdoing.

Please proceed with the impeachment proceedings.

Respectfully,

Erin Wenz