New Hamp****re Legislature to Vote on Impeachment
Tuesday, 8 April 2008, 4:49 pm
Column: Rosalea Barker
Stateside With Rosalea Barker
New Hamp****re Legislature to Vote on Impeaching Bush and Cheney
On April 16, the New Hamp****re legislature will consider House Resolution
24, a resolution
petitioning Congress to commence impeachment procedures. Introduced by
veteran legislator Betty
Hall, 87, its successful passage would create U.S. history.
For those interested in finding out more about events between now and
April 16, and wanting to
add their sup****t, contact details are available at hall4impeachment.com
There will be a rally
in Concord, NH, on April 14. For details, email info [at] impeachthem.com
According to Phil Burk, who created the www.impeachBush.tv website right
after the Florida
election debacle in 2000, more than 88 towns and cities have now passed
impeachment
resolutions. In an email interview, I asked him about the legal standing
of such resolutions,
their history, and the consequences if both a President and Vice President
are impeached.
As for the resolution’s im****tance, Burk says at the end of the interview:
Some people wonder why we are pursuing impeachment when Bush and Cheney
will be leaving office
in 2009. But impeachment is critical because if they leave office without
being impeached or
forced to resign, then it will leave in place a dangerous precedent.
Future Presidents will be
able to mislead us into war, spy on us without warrants, torture prisoners
with no hope for
trials, and then point to George Bush and say "He did it. So can we." If
we do not want future
Presidents, of any party, to have that power then we must act now.
::Scoop Interview with Phil Burk::
SCOOP:
First, can you tell me a little about your background, in particular how
it relates to your
knowledge of constitutional law and interest in impeachment?
BURK:
I became interested in impeachment right after the election in November of
2000. I watched the
way Bush tried to block the counting of votes in Florida. It made me
wonder whether he
respected democracy enough to be President. So I created the
"http://www.ImpeachBush.TV/"
website in December of 2000 just in case things went badly.
For several years I studied and filled the site with information about the
Constitution and the
history and process of impeachment. As Bush's Presidency unfolded I
started do***enting his
various crimes. When the Iraq war started it became clear that he was
committing impeachable
offenses and work on the site accelerated.
I eventually connected with other activists and have been involved in
national organizing for
impeachment. I have also done a lot of work with other people on local
impeachment resolutions.
Only the US House of Representative can impeach a President or Vice
President. But cities,
towns and states are free to petition the federal government and ask them
to impeach.
Over 88 towns and cities have now passed impeachment resolutions, many
based on model
resolutions downloaded from our site. I have also helped state
legislatures in California,
Wa****ngton, and New Mexico draft impeachment resolutions.
You can find more information about these local resolutions on my site at:
http://www.impeachbush.tv/impeach/bystate.html
My background is actually in the software business. So I have spent a lot
of time writing
contracts and software design do***ents. The Constitution is both a
contract between the
government and the people, and a design do***ent for a new nation. It is
an incredibly well
crafted do***ent that I think everyone should read.
SCOOP:
Given that the three key players in the House who have responsibility for
moving Kucinich's
Cheney impeachment resolution forward--Hoyer, Pelosi, and Conyers--have
shown no sign of doing
so, how will a memorial from a state be able to fare better?
BURK:
Members of Congress take an oath of office to protect and defend the
Constitution. That is
their primary duty and loyalty to the Constitution should trump party
loyalty. We have seen
several politicians who initially resisted impeachment, but after intense
lobbying changed
their mind and come out in sup****t of impeachment. Kucinich and Wexler
listened to people
across America and eventually became champions for impeachment and
executive oversight.
We feel that Pelosi and Conyers are starting to listen. They have been
getting lots of letters
and phone calls, and seeing many cities pass impeachment resolutions. It
is quite possible that
when a state like New Hamp****re p***** one that it will push them over the
edge and they will
decide to fulfill their oath of office.
I believe that Conyers and Pelosi are honorable people and that they will
eventually do the
right thing. I hope so because their inaction would do more to undermine
the Constitution than
the crimes of Bush and Cheney. The Founding Fathers predicted that a
President might abuse
their power. That is why they added impeachment to the Constitution. When
a criminal breaks a
law and the law is enforced then it strengthens the law. But when Pelosi
says "impeachment is
off the table" then she is saying that the law will not be enforced. That
takes away the power
of the law. Thus Pelosi's inaction is doing more to harm our
Constitutional system of law then
the actions of President Bush.
SCOOP:
Have any impeachment petitions or memorials been delivered to Congress in
the past eight years?
If so, what was their fate?
BURK:
Yes. Many of the local impeachment resolutions have been sent to the
Speaker of the House Nancy
Pelosi. Part of her job is to accept petitions from the country at large.
The petitions are
sent from her office to the Clerk of the House where they are entered in
the Congressional
Record and then referred to the appropriate committee. Impeachment
resolutions go to the
Judiciary Committee. You can see many impeachment resolutions in the
Congressional Record, for
example this page:
http://www.impeachbush.tv/archives/cong_record_070719.pdf
The Judiciary Committee is not forced to act on these resolutions. But
each petition builds
pressure on the committee. We are confident that they will eventually
start impeachment
hearings as a result of this pressure. Our Constitution is too im****tant
for us to give up hope.
We know that it is possible because in 1903 a resolution from the state of
Florida was sent to
Congress asking for the impeachment of Federal Judge Charles Swayne.
Representative William
Lamar of Florida called for impeachment and it was approved. That is why
Jefferson's Manual,
the House Rules Book, states in Section 603 that "there are various
methods of setting an
impeachment in motion: [including] by charges transmitted from the
legislature of a State." The
effort to pass these local resolutions is called the "Section 603
Movement".
SCOOP:
If Bush and Cheney were successfully impeached, the Speaker of the House
becomes President.
Does Section 2 of the XXV Amendment kick in, i.e., would Pelosi then
nominate a Vice President,
to be confirmed by both Houses of Congress?
BURK:
Pelosi would become President only if there was a sudden loss of both the
President and Vice
President. But in the case of impeachment, this can be avoided by the
Republicans. Recall when
Spiro Agnew and Nixon were being charged. Spiro Agnew resigned and Nixon
appointed Ford. Then
Nixon resigned and Ford became President. Then Ford pardoned Nixon. I
suspect that Cheney and
Bush would resign if faced with the certainty of a trial.
Some people wonder why we are pursuing impeachment when Bush and Cheney
will be leaving office
in 2009. But impeachment is critical because if they leave office without
being impeached or
forced to resign, then it will leave in place a dangerous precedent.
Future Presidents will be
able to mislead us into war, spy on us without warrants, torture prisoners
with no hope for
trials, and then point to George Bush and say "He did it. So can we." If
we do not want future
Presidents, of any party, to have that power then we must act now.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/print.html?path=HL0804/S00115.htm
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