Posted by leftofdayton on June 19, 2008
Impeach Bush now?
Congressional proceedings would help prevent another mistaken war
BY RAY McGOVERN • Detroit Free Press
United States Rep. John Conyers, the Detroit Democrat who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, has a rendezvous with destiny. He is uniquely placed to thrust a rod through the wheels of a White House juggernaut to war with Iran by commencing impeachment proceedings against President George W. Bush.
A move to impeach would bolster the resistance to Bush among our senior military leaders who know that attacking Iran at this time would be the strategic equivalent of the marches into Russia by Napoleon and Hitler.
Since Conyers took the helm of Judiciary in January 2007, the train of abuses and usurpations by the Bush administration has gotten even longer. But oddly, Conyers has lost his earlier appetite for impeachment and begun offering all manner of transparent excuses not to proceed. On July 23, 2007, for example, Conyers told Cindy Sheehan, the Rev. Lennox Yearwood and me that he would need 218 votes in the House, and vociferously claimed the votes were not there.
Well, they are now. Last week, 251 members of the House voted to refer to Conyers’ committee the 35 Articles of Impeachment offered by U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio. Conyers should take them up. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Democratic Party, George Bush, Impeachment, US CONGRESS | 1 Comment »
Posted by leftofdayton on June 14, 2008
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ALERT
By Meg White
“This isn’t just about impeachment. It’s about reorienting our politics to a position which respects morality. Our moral compass needs to be reset here.”
-Rep. Dennis Kucinich
In an exclusive interview with BuzzFlash Friday, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) discussed the 35 articles of impeachment he introduced against President George W. Bush earlier this week. Though the word on the Hill is that the call for impeachment will not go anywhere, the Ohio representative is undeterred.
“This is a very grave matter that cannot be and will not be swept under the rug by some kind of a legislative trap,” he said.
Representatives Robert Wexler (D-FL), Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) and Barbara Lee (D-CA) have signed on to the resolution, and Kucinich expects more co-sponsors in the coming days and weeks.
“There will be more. I’m quite confident of that, and as members start to read the document it’ll keep growing,” he said.
The proposal is now in the Judiciary Committee, where many expect it to stay at least until after the November elections. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in George Bush, Impeachment, POLITICAL ANALYSIS, US CONGRESS | 1 Comment »
Posted by leftofdayton on March 5, 2008
CLEVELAND - Dennis Kucinich, the liberal Ohio politician who has made two failed White House campaigns, won the Democratic primary in his battle to keep his seat.
Although the presidential primary commanded most of the nation’s attention, Kucinich’s race was the best known congressional contest on ballots in Ohio and Texas. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Democratic Party, US CONGRESS | No Comments »
Posted by leftofdayton on March 2, 2008
Submitted by BuzzFlash on Fri, 02/29/2008 - 3:33pm.
Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism
by Ha-Joon Chang
Reviewed by Thom Hartmann
The fundamental myth of the Milton/Thomas Friedman neoliberal cons is that in a “flat world” everybody is not only able to compete with everybody else freely, but should be required to. It sounds nice. America trades with - and competes with trade with and for - the European Union. France against Germany. England against Australia.
But wait a minute. In such a “free” trade competition, who will win when the match-up is Canada versus the Solomon Islands? Germany versus Bulgaria? Zimbabwe versus Italy?
There are two glaringly obvious flaws in the so-called “free trade” theories expounded by neoliberal philosophers like Friedrich Von Hayek and Milton Friedman, and promoted relentlessly in the popular press by (very wealthy) hucksters like Thomas Friedman. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Blue Dog Democrats, Democratic Party, Employment Issues, PRESIDENTIAL RACE, Republican Party, SHERROD BROWN, US CONGRESS | No Comments »
Posted by leftofdayton on February 2, 2008
David Esrati for Congress OH-3
Here’s my endorsement in the race to beat Mike Turner in the fall, and it’s NOT the Democratic Party’s choice of Jane whatshername. There is good reason for that. Ms Jane appears to be mostly fluff with very little substance. Her “website” is basically an online billboard with no substantive information about her positions on anything. She got her butt whupped by Turner in ‘04, 63% to 37%. And, despite her proclamations, she was NOT unanimously endorsed by the Montgomery Count Dem’s…I know, I was there for the vote.
Compare this with David Esrati, who for the last three years has been posting his thoughts about “change” and how to achieve it for the 3rd District at Esrati.com. On subjects ranging from the recent interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve Board to giving computer laptops to students in Dayton Public Schools as a way to enhance the educational process, Esrati has articulated a vision that one can look at, ponder and discuss. Where has Jane been for the last 4 years? There’s no evidence of her presence on the local political scene, whereas David Esrati has been in the thick of it the whole time.
We need a voice in the Democratic Congress that is not beholden to the same old power elites that have controlled the levers of power for far too long, both here in the Miami Valley and in Washington. A boldness of vision and a dedication to Real Reform are hallmarks of David Esrati’s campaign for Congress. Honest to a fault!
Visit Esrati.com for more information. Check out his videos on Youtube. Support real change. Support David Esrati for Congress!
Posted in Anti-war Veterans, Constitution, Iraq War, Montgomery County Democratic Party, US CONGRESS, US Government | No Comments »
Posted by leftofdayton on January 31, 2008
Ralph Nader Flirts with Presidential Bid. Give it up, Ralph…after what you did last time around [including accepting PAC money from REPUBLICANS] who do you think is going to vote for you? When I ponder who it is we need as our next President I try to imagine someone in the office who actually has the ability to LEAD. Nader’s “following” is so minuscule as to be next to non existent. Yes, he had a progressive role at one time, but, despite his rhetoric, Ralphie’s time has PASSED!
Mukasey Won’t Comment on Waterboarding
By LARA JAKES JORDAN/Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Michael Mukasey said Tuesday he will refuse to publicly say whether the interrogation tactic known as waterboarding is illegal, digging in against critics who want the Bush administration to define it as torture.
Did we say TOLD YOU SO?? Despite harsh questioning by Senators Leahy, Kennedy and Specter, the nations top Law Enforcement official refused [again] to condemn the torture technique of waterboarding as, of all things, torture.
“Given that waterboarding is not part of the current program and may never be added to the current program, I do not think it would be appropriate for me to pass definitive judgment on the technique’s legality,” he said.
The reasoning behind this deliberate dance of deceit? If the AG formally recognizes waterboarding as torture it puts his bosses, Mssr Bush and Cheney, in deep doo doo, mainly because they and their minions are ultimately responsible and could therefor conceivably be charged with War Crimes under the Geneva Conventions. Gasp! Shades of Alberto Gonzalez!
Posted in Democratic Party, MIKE TURNER, Montgomery County Commission, PRESIDENTIAL RACE, Republican Party, Torture, US CONGRESS, freedom of speech | 2 Comments »
Posted by leftofdayton on January 23, 2008
January 23, 2008, 12:57 pm
New York Times Politics Blog By
David M. HerszenhornRepresentative Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio may get excluded from Democratic presidential debates, as he has been recently, but no one can deny him the floor in the House.
And today Mr. Kucinich took to the floor to fire off his latest salvo at the Bush administration: his plans to introduce Articles of Impeachment against President Bush on Jan. 28 — the day of Mr. Bush’s State of the Union speech.
Accusing the administration of lying about the need for the war in Iraq, Mr. Kucinich said he did not need to hear the president’s
assessment. “We know the State of the Union,” he declared. “It’s a lie.”
He also fired a volley at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California
who has maintained that impeaching Mr. Bush is not on the table for Congressional Democrats. “If impeachment is off the table,” Mr. Kucinich said, “truth is off the table. If truth is off the table
then this body is living a lie.”
Mr. Kucinich introduced Articles of Impeachment against Vice
President Dick Cheney last April and in November, with the surprise help of Republicans seeking to embarrass the Democrats, he nearly succeeded in securing an hour of debate on the House floor. House Democratic leaders blocked that, however, by referring the impeachment effort back to the Judiciary Committee.
Anti-Bush groups have been urging Mr. Kucinich to undertake an
effort to impeach the president.
Posted in Impeachment, US CONGRESS, US Government | No Comments »
Posted by leftofdayton on January 22, 2008
reposted from Daytonology [thanks to Jeffery for some Excellent research on Congressman Mike Turners ties to the Construction/"development" industry.]
Mike Turner has received significant contributions from a cluster of donors best described as the real estate/development special interest community. This includes PAC and individual donors from real estate, contracting, construction, engineering and architecture, and building trades unions.
read the rest of this story [ and be sure to check out the comments section!] at
http://daytonology.blogspot.com/2008/01/mike-turner-and-real-estatedevelopment.html
Posted in MIKE TURNER, MSM/Main Stream Media, Ohio Government, Political Corruption, US CONGRESS | No Comments »
Posted by leftofdayton on January 21, 2008
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she’s drawing heat from fellow Democratic lawmakers as well as people across the nation for refusing to move to impeach President George W. Bush or Vice President Dick Cheney.
“I go through airports, and people have buttons as if they knew I was coming,” Pelosi said with a smile, mimicking a protester pointing to an “Impeach” button on their chest.
But the California Democrat said she is sticking to her position that trying to remove Bush or Cheney would be divisive, and she added, most likely unsuccessful. If the House voted to impeach Bush and Cheney, a two-thirds vote would be needed in the closely divided Senate to oust them.
Many Democrats and civil liberties groups have accused the Bush administration of misleading the United States into the Iraq war and violating the rights of U.S. citizens with its warrantless surveillance program. The White House denies the charges.
In helping Democrats win back control of Congress in 2006 from 
Republicans, Pelosi said she would not push for impeachment despite a number of calls to do so.
Speaking with reporters, she recalled that she wanted to focus on unifying the nation, passing the Democrats’ legislative agenda — not picking an impeachment fight with the White House.
“It was my belief that an impeachment of the Vice President or the President … would be very divisive in our country, and that is what I believed then,” Pelosi said. “It should have come to no surprise when I became Speaker I said it again, and I continue to hold that view.”
Click here for more Reuters 2008 campaign coverage.
Posted in Blue Dog Democrats, Constitution, Dick Cheney, Impeachment, Political Corruption, US CONGRESS, freedom of speech | No Comments »
