The consensus among knowledgable, informed critics and opponents of the Bush Adminsitration is that the leadership of Congress is correct in taking the impeachment of the president "off the table" at this time. The Republican attack / dirty tricks machine is clearly ready to spring into action at the first hint of such aggressive action against Bush. The back-fired attempt to smear Speaker Pelosi as the orginator of a request for "military transport" to her home constituency is clear proof, for those who need any. (See link)
http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/16646329.htm Though lawyers I know are unaware if it, the constitution provides for impeachment of legislators, judges, and other federal officials, where they are guilty of "high crimes and misdemeanors." Clearly a case can be made that the Democrat controlled House of Representatives should begin impeachment hearings for Bush's henchmen such as Alberto Gonzales sooner rather than later. His latest testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of a law that strips federal courts of the right to hear cases of prisoners imprisoned indefinitely at Guantanamo provides another stark example of his lack of regard for the Constitition of the United States.
Chief among the crimes of the AG of course are his approval of torture in clear violation of U.S. treaty obligations under the Geneva Conventions, and violations of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act [ FISA] requirements for domestic wiretapping and eavesdropping on the private telephone conversations of American citizens. Perhaps more shocking, however, is his eagerness to look for ways to put his own gloss on hallowed rights protected by the Constitution, such as freedom from unlawful arrest without due cause, and arbitrary imprisonment. These abuses were common in the days when our founders fought for their independence from the King of England, and that is why our constitution provides that the right of "habeas corpus shall not be suspended... unless in cases of invasion or rebellion the public safety shall require it." Yet, Gonzales feels it important to make the claim that "there is no express grant of habeas in the constitution."
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/01/24/MNGDONO11O1.DTL Right, Al. Likewise there are no express grants of "life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness." So is it possible that our founders considered the right of habeas corpus, recognized as it has been in the English Common Law since as early as the Magna Carta, to be "inalienable" and "self-evident", as is the 'truth' that all of us are created "equal" ?
As benign as this man's personal appearance and mild mannered demeanor make him seem, this is a dangerous individual. And the truth is that our president and vice-president have surrounded themselves with such types. None should doubt that they lie awake nights plotting strategies to help them escape the sanctions and public opprobrium that should be heaped on their heads during the two score months in which they will continue to hold the reins of government. Thus 'eternal vigilance' is the price that must be paid by those of us who want to see them bear the punishment which they have so richly earned . Let impeachment begin with this venal, despicable excuse for a chief law enforcement officer of the nation. None of the Bush gang deserve to be brought down more than Alberto Gonzalez, the sooner the better.
