Biden, Kucinich, Iran, Impeachment
By John Nichols, The Nation
When it comes to the question of impeachment, the difference between Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Joe Biden and Department of Peace champion Dennis Kucinich is merely a matter of timing.
Biden says that if George Bush attacks Iran without a formal declaration of war by Congress, the president must be impeached.
Kucinich thinks it would be smarter to act before the bombs start flying.
The distinction was illustrated during Thursday night's Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas when Catherine Jackson, the mother of an Iraq War veteran – Marine Christopher Jackson, who told the audience, "Our troops need to come home now" -- expressed her fear that "members of the Bush administration and neoconservative members of Congress are beating the drums of war again."
Ms. Jackson asked what the candidates what they would do to prevent an attack on Iran.
Biden was especially pointed in his response, saying of the president: "If he takes the country to war in [Iran] without a vote of Congress, which will not exist, then he should be impeached."
Later, when Kucinich addressed the issue, he suggested that it was not enough to talk about holding members of the administration to account after the fighting starts. Noting the established high crimes and misdemeanors of Vice President Dick Cheney – the most outspoken champion of picking a fight with Iran –Kucinich told the crowd the president and vice president are already "out of control."
The Ohio congressman, who earlier this month sought to open a House debate on impeaching Cheney for attempting to provoke a war with Iran, among other transgressions, explained that there is an appropriate and immediate answer to the fears expressed by Ms. Jackson.
"It's called ‘impeachment.' You don't wait. You do it now. Impeach them now," Kucinich declared, over the cheers of the audience.
Among those on their feet and applauding was Catherine Jackson.
- davidswanson's blog
- Login or register to post comments
Printer-friendly version- Send to friend
Join us & contribute
Proud members of the Democratic Party
Copyright 2006 Democrats.com. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy
Timing is everything
The time for half-measures is over. Only those who support impeachment can be counted as serious about opposing the war. Biden is not the enemy, but for whatever reason he is letting events unfold without effective opposition. If he were a freshman in Congress perhaps we could make excuses for him, but he's been around the block a few times and he knows very well what's going down and how it's going to play out.
Once the attack on Iran starts it will be too late to initiate anything. Even if the attack is done in cold blood, without the pretext of a fabricated Iranian intolerable action, war fever will grip the nation and many if not most Democrats will rally to the flag. Fear of being seen as weak, unpatriotic or unsupportive of the troops will grip their equivocating souls. Nor does declaring that Bush doesn't have a Congressional authorization to attack Iran pose a serious obstacle to war. It is a step in the battle for public opinion, but if Bush claims that Iranian fishermen shot up a PT boat with a bb gun and comes to Congress spouting outrage and demanding condemnation and freedom to act, it is foreseeable that he will get it.
Biden knows all this. His position is simply not honest, nothing better than a fig leaf covering his fear of taking a real stand against letting the war happen. Kucinich is giving us the leadership we urgently need at this grave moment in our history. We need to boldly support him.
Impeachment
Last week a rather amazing thing happened. We, the People, called, emailed, and faxed Senator Reid, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and told him to REPLACE Feinstein. Senator Reid heard from us all day long AND Feinstein heard the message and voted TO hold them accountable. A lesson learned on both sides. IF the majority of Americans want Cheney impeached, then they need to do the same thing and start calling, emailing, and faxing the House Judiciary Committee starting with John Conyers, Chair, & the 22 Members of that Committee and don't forget Pelosi! Demand that they immediately proceed with Impeachment Hearings and don't let up 'til the word is in the news! It is WE, the PEOPLE who, Constitutionally make the demand and start the process in the House! It is our Right as Citizens.
Free Press or More Spin?
There used to a a law in the United States against monopolies. It's still on the books somewhere, but not implemented. All too soon, early December, the FCC will hurriedly pass their latest approval to allow the owner(s) of the major TV station in a city to also own the newspaper. The FCC gave a 4-hr notice in Seattle to "discuss" this further conglomeratization. Amazingly a lot of people were able to show up, but nothing as it would have been. The FCC really doesn't want to hear the objections. Their minds are made up. Ask yourselves if there's any actual reporting or hard questions asked on TV or in the papers now? There hasn't been since Watergate! It's only going to get worse unles each of us starts calling, faxing, & emailing the FCC, our Reps in the House and Senate, and sends a clear message we will not accept the media being owned & controlled by the same handful of people. We are NOT learning the Truth and haven't been for a very long time because mainstream media IS owned by the few and THEY decide what and how much the American Public is to know and, worse, believe. This latest move by the FCC to further empower these already too powerful media giants must be halted now or we can kiss our Freedom of both Speech and Press Goodbye. It's already close to disappearing. We must act before the FCC does which, I think, might be December 4th.