NH Republican Legislator Calls For Bush/Cheney Impeachment, War Criminal Charges

[Hissyspit]

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/31233

NH Republican Legislator Calls for Bush-Cheney Impeachment, War Criminal Charges

Submitted by Chip on Fri, 2008-02-22 07:10. Congress | Criminal Prosecution | Impeachment
Maverick Republican Drops WC Bomb on Bush/Cheney
Dan DeWalt | OpEdNews.com

In a packed hearing room on Feb 19th, under a carved wooden sign reading "Live Free or Die"-, the New Hampshire House committee of State-Federal Relations and Veterans' Affairs heard testimony on Representative Betty Hall's HR 24, which calls on the U.S. Congress to begin impeachment hearings for George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.

What was most notable about the four straight hours of testimony was not that opponents of the resolution could only muster two people willing to testify against it, both Republican stalwarts using selected excerpts from Jefferson's parliamentary manual or from the bill itself, whose arguments were embarrassingly empty.

It was not that Kris Roberts, the committee chair, had taken this hearing seriously enough to have researched the law, history and nuances of the subject, and that he used this to inform the proceedings in a reasonably fair manner.

It was not the fact that after the hearing ended, several pro-impeachment witnesses were approached by committee members and thanked for their clarity and useful testimony.

It was not even the novelty of the interjections by one committee member that would periodically steer the conversation abruptly into Rockefeller/Trilateral Commission territory.

The most remarkable moment came late in the afternoon when Republican House member Steve Vaillancourt strode into the room to testify. After passing out copies of the second chapter of Patrick Buchanan's "Day of Reckoning"- as supporting evidence, Vaillancourt opened his remarks quoting "fools rush in where wise men fear to tread"-, and it sounded like a set up to condemn a rush to impeach. But instead he said that Betty Hall is neither fool nor wise man, but is a model of courage and that her impeachment resolution should be supported.

And then the fun began.

Member Vaillancourt then gave a short history lesson, telling the committee that until Bush/Cheney, America had never engaged in an offensive war (sic.), and pointing out that the Truman, Eisenhower. Kennedy and Reagan "Doctrines"- had all been based on defense and had not been offensive in nature. Warming to the subject, he delved into the ramifications of Bush/Cheney's actions, saying that their reckless foreign policy has been anti-American, unconstitutional, and ruinously costly to the nation.

He was fairly thundering by the time that he pronounced that not only should Bush and Cheney be impeached, but also they should be tried as war criminals in a Nuremburg style trial for crimes against humanity. He flatly stated that the war in Iraq has provided grounds for war crimes charges against the President and Vice President. And there was not one word of protest from a single committee member. They may or may not support this resolution to impeach, but there seems to be no one left with a credible argument to defend Bush/Cheney.

Vaillancourt said that he spoke not as a Republican, a New Hampshire citizen or an American, but as a member of humanity. His remarks made a common sense plea for an honest appraisal of our current political situation, for the acknowledgement that we have a duty to act as a decent and responsible people, and that principle be the governing factor of our government's actions. These are all values that should, and once did, cut across party lines. If the current political parties have forgotten this, and become so degraded as to allow the lawlessness and criminality of this administration to go unchecked, the people have not.

MORE

[99th_Monkey]

1. Oh, but having evidence presented in the House is just "a waste of time"

cus we "don't have the votes in the Senate" .. which i think is the current line of irrationality that passes for a reason
for Dems to not push for impeachment.

But here is a real life example of what happens when the cat's let out of the bag, and the evidence is all pulled out of the
dungeons and closets and looked at in the harsh light of day... there simply IS NO DEFENSE.. except state secrets which don't
fly in impeachment hearings.

I can imagine no stronger argument in favor of just getting the fuck on with it already, and IMPEACHING THOSE BASTARDS NOW!

[krispos42]

2. First Rec

And that is true, isn't it? I think it is. That we've never invaded a country out of the blue before. Afghanistan was because the Taliban were protecting and encouraging Al Qaeda (Unical gas pipeline aside), Desert Storm was after Kuwait was invaded, Somalia and Kosovo were humanitarian, Grenada was protecting US medical students IIRC, Vietnam and Korea were after invasions and as part of UN peacekeeping, World War Two was after Pearl Harbor was attacked, World War One was after teh Germans began torpedoeing our shipping, the Philipine Insurrection was occupation and pacification duty after the Spanish left, going into Mexico after Pancho Villa was after he raided an army outpost in New Mexido, the Civil War was an internal matter, War of 1812 was a British invasion, the Barbary Pirates were preying on US merchant ships, and Mexican-American War was kinda sorta an invasion of US soil.

I think, at least.

[barbtries]

3. is there any video of this hearing?

i would love, love, to watch it.

go,constitution

[pleah]

4. K&R I love it when people stand up againt war criminals.

I only wish more would. Maybe, just maybe, if more would, we could actually get something done.

[babylonsister]

5. Rec'd! nt