Who Else Was at the Harpers/Conyers Impeach-Bush Town Hall in NYC Tonight?

[Stephanie]

It was packed. And the weirdest thing - I went to Town Hall at noon to buy tickets for me and three friends, and when I got to the window, there was exactly one ticket left. I got the absolute last seat.

John Conyers is a very great man.

The other panelists were John Dean, Elizabeth Holtzman, who was actually on the committee in the Nixon impeachment (which happened in committee but never got to the floor because Nixon resigned first), Lewis Lapham, editor of Harpers, and Michael Ratner (Center for Constitutional Law, I think it's called).

It was actually in Town Hall, a theater packed to the rafters with about 2500 intensely motivated people.

[babylonsister]

1. Oh, Stephanie, you rock, and give us a very heavily

detailed rundown of what happened, please? Town Hall, NYC, No Shit!

[Stephanie]

2. they're going to other cities too

Conyers introduced HR 635 to form a committee to investigate whether articles of impeachment are called for. They need more members to sign on. I think he has 35 so far.

[katinmn]

11. 27 co-sponsors of H Res 635 so far, Another MN rep signed on yesterday!

We've got two (Oberstar and Sabo) and hopefully soon a third. I called my rep's office again yesterday and encouraged her to sign on. After a half dozen letters and and phone calls I think I have the staff convinced at least.

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:HE00635:@@@N

Thanks for going to this important meeting, Stephanie!

[Stephanie]

3. okay, so

Sam Seder was the MC. Ratner laid out the items that Bush was inarguably impeachable under. They were illegal torture, illegal eavesdropping, and i can't quite remember the third, i think it was lying us into war. Holtzman said we might find that the withholding of the recently produced 250 emails may lead to an obstruction charge which could also be grounds. They said there is no requirement of any kind of finding of criminality. The grounds are treason, bribery, and high crimes and misdeameanors. But those are as determined by Congress, not necessarily by a court of law. Dean said that in the Nixon WH it was finally the WH staff sick of the lies that undid Nixon.

[babylonsister]

4. Thank you so much for your update! Kicking this!

[jarnocan]

31. awesome

Hope some good comes of this! It should happen, but will it? I can't believe they are still fighting to keep us from having verifiable elections http://www.icountcoalition.org/?tr=y&auid=1458428

[Cleita]

5. Oh you rock and I hope to know more about this when

you post. Nothing on the news of course.

:yourock:

[Stephanie]

7. I thought they said it would be on C-Span

I'm not sure.

Conyers kept reminding the more hasty people that if you are going to impeach Bush for putting himself above the law, then you have to precisely follow the law in doing it. So the process is that first a committee needs to investigate it.

[rwheeler31]

6. Thank you . When will we be able to see this?

[Stephanie]

8. Several panelists said we were on the road to TYRANNY!

It was kind of crazy to hear it coming out of the mouths of these exceptionally sane and responsible lawyers and congress people. They said we are on the verge of tyranny when a president claims powers above the other branches and puts himself above the rule of law and flouts Congress, such as the signing statement he attached to the McCain torture bill.

[az chela]

9. On the road???

We have dealt with this since 2003.bush is a war criminal along with rumsfeld,cheney and all the rethugs

[im10ashus]

20. That's interesting.

Good to know we aren't the only one's who feel that way.

[Hissyspit]

10. Excellent, Stephanie. I am so glad to hear a first hand report of this.

Recommended.

[Stephanie]

12. I should have taken notes

the idea was to get your congress people to sign on to Conyers' bill

[populistdriven]

13. John Conyers is carrying the torch!

[Stephanie]

14. Here is info from Conyers >

http://www.johnconyers.com/

I have just completed a thorough review of this administration’s misconduct and have produced a 250-page report that provides evidence suggesting further steps to be taken.

It is time to take bolder measures in our pursuit of justice. This White House has responded to questions about its conduct with misleading statements, obfuscation, and vicious attacks against their critics. We must take the next step towards restoring accountability in our federal government. To this end I have:

• Introduced a resolution of censure for both President Bush and Vice-President Cheney, and;

• I am calling upon Congress to create a select committee similar to the Ervin Committee, which investigated President Nixon’s Watergate crimes. This select committee should investigate those offenses which appear to rise to the level of impeachment.

This administration must be held accountable for its misdeeds. We have considerable work to do and I am going to need your help to make this effort successful. Join me in sending a message to the President, the media, and the American people that we are not going to stand for an imperial presidency any longer.

Sincerely,

John Conyers

[Stephanie]

15. Here is info from Ratner's group, the Center for Constitutional Rights >

http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/ccr/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=2702

In its new book, Articles of Impeachment Against George W. Bush, the Center for Constitutional Rights makes it clear that by illegally spying on U.S. citizens, lying to the American people about the Iraq war, seizing undue executive power, and sending people to be tortured overseas, President Bush is unfit to lead this country.

Here is how you can get involved:

Join CCR and a growing number of U.S. Representatives in calling for a select committee to investigate the possibility of impeachment by filling out the form below.

Buy the book from Melville House Publishers, or send it to a member of Congress at half price, by clicking here.

________________________________________


http://www.ccr-ny.org/v2/reports/report.asp?ObjID=J3Io2U04I6&Content=717

Action Alert: New CCR Book on Impeachment Out Today, Write Your Representatives

Synopsis

We know George Bush has lied to us, spied on us, broken the law and sent Americans to fight an illegal war. The time for just debate and protest is over. We need real action to save our country and our Constitution – Congress must consider the impeachment of George W. Bush. Click here to take action: www.ccr-ny.org/impeachment

We outline the legal case for impeaching Bush in an important new book, Articles of Impeachment Again George W. Bush, published by Melville House this week. We want to share special information about the book with our supporters - click here to learn more.

Legal experts from the Center for Constitutional Rights propose four articles of impeachment in the book, explaining the case clearly and precisely. This is essential reading for all Americans. The book is part of our campaign to demand Congress show the President he is not above the law - please join us in urging Congress consider impeachment today: www.ccr-ny.org/impeachment

Why now? The President's illegal domestic spying program has been exposed - CCR is currently fighting it in federal court - and a majority of Americans now say Bush lied about the war in Iraq and it is a mistake. A growing number of U.S. Representatives now support a resolution to investigate impeachment. Take a moment to act today and encourage even more representatives to join the fight - click here to act.

Together, we can beat back Bush's illegal actions through Congress and the courts.

Thank you for taking the time to act today, and please forward this email to your friends so we can spread the word.

Sincerely,

Bill Goodman

Center for Constitutional Rights Legal Director

[Just Me]

37. Thanks. I signed on board!!!

:hi:

[Stephanie]

16. Here is Elizabeth Holtzman's article in The Nation >

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060130/holtzman

The Impeachment of George W. Bush

Elizabeth Holtzman

<snip>

Like many others, I have been deeply troubled by Bush's breathtaking scorn for our international treaty obligations under the United Nations Charter and the Geneva Conventions. I have also been disturbed by the torture scandals and the violations of US criminal laws at the highest levels of our government they may entail, something I have written about in these pages . These concerns have been compounded by growing evidence that the President deliberately misled the country into the war in Iraq. But it wasn't until the most recent revelations that President Bush directed the wiretapping of hundreds, possibly thousands, of Americans, in violation of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)--and argued that, as Commander in Chief, he had the right in the interests of national security to override our country's laws--that I felt the same sinking feeling in my stomach as I did during Watergate.

As a matter of constitutional law, these and other misdeeds constitute grounds for the impeachment of President Bush. A President, any President, who maintains that he is above the law--and repeatedly violates the law--thereby commits high crimes and misdemeanors, the constitutional standard for impeachment and removal from office. A high crime or misdemeanor is an archaic term that means a serious abuse of power, whether or not it is also a crime, that endangers our constitutional system of government.


The framers of our Constitution feared executive power run amok and provided the remedy of impeachment to protect against it. While impeachment is a last resort, and must never be lightly undertaken (a principle ignored during the proceedings against President Bill Clinton), neither can Congress shirk its responsibility to use that tool to safeguard our democracy. No President can be permitted to commit high crimes and misdemeanors with impunity.

But impeachment and removal from office will not happen unless the American people are convinced of its necessity after a full and fair inquiry into the facts and law is conducted. That inquiry must commence now.

[slipslidingaway]

17. K&R and thanks for the report. I just called c-span to see if they

did tape the event and the person needed to check with someone else, unfortunately they were not available at the moment so they asked me call back later. It was nice to hear they will be going to other cities asking people to get involved. Thanks for going and reporting.

"Conyers kept reminding the more hasty people that if you are going to impeach Bush for putting himself above the law, then you have to precisely follow the law in doing it. So the process is that first a committee needs to investigate it."


For those that may have missed this post.

Why We Act
by Congressman John Conyers
Thu Mar 02, 2006 at 10:16:19 AM PDT

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/3/2/121619/6577

[Stephanie]

18. thanks and I can't believe I'm the only DUer who was there

speak out, DU!

[MadMaddie]

26. Stephanie was there a schedule of where they would be

speaking around the country?

[Stephanie]

28. I didn't see anything - it's through Harpers magazine

I'd keep checking there:

www.harpers.org

[MadMaddie]

29. Thanks for the link!!

:hi:

[slipslidingaway]

32. Additional report and link appreciated, my representative will not

support Conyers, hopefully others will.

[im10ashus]

19. K&R!

I wish I could have made it. Thanks for posting.

[Stephanie]

21. here is my report in a nutshell that I just sent to a friend

They presented a very compelling case. I can't figure out why there is not one single news story except for the frikking NY Sun. John Conyers is such a hero. And I can't figure out why Liz Holtzman is not my senator - she was awesome. This guy Ratner from the Center for Constitutional Rights laid out four main points. Bush should be impeached for: illegally spying on U.S. citizens, lying about the Iraq war, seizing undue executive power, and sending people to be tortured overseas, and he cited the illegal signing statement accompanying the McCain bill. They all discussed the co-equal branches and Bush's attempts to seize power with his "unitary" ideas. Holtzman said that if the WH or VP deliberately withheld the 250 emails recently turned over in the Plame case, then that is obstruction right there and might be the trigger. All agreed that impeachment doesn't require a prior criminal conviction, that the Congress can determine what is a high crime on its own. Conyers talked about how it has to be a movement and we need to get more reps to sign on to his bill, HR 635, to start a committee to investigate, which is the first step. John Dean said that the real impetus for the Nixon resignation was that WH staff started to turn their backs on him and refused to lie for him. Holtzman was actually on the committee to impeach Nixon, and he was impeached in committee but resigned before it got to the floor. They all agreed that we were on the road to tyranny, that a pres who puts himself above the law is a tyrant, which was weird to hear them say it, they're all so sort of lawyerish and respectable. The crowd was your usual suspects and the Q&A was ridiculous, but all in all well worth seeing.

[goclark]

22. Thanks Sgephanie! nt

[im10ashus]

23. DAMN I wish I had been there.

"...co-equal branches and Bush's attempts to seize power with his "unitary" ideas."

THAT SHOULD BE ON THE FRONT PAGE OF EVERY PAPER.

[rodeodance]

35. thanks

[EVDebs]

24. Did C-Span cover it ? Can I watch it ? eom

[Fiendish Thingy]

25. K&R! what other cities are they going to? n/t

[Stephanie]

27. Here's Salon's article >

This first part was really fascinating, with Conyers telling stories about MLK.

The I-word goes public
At a forum in New York, pundits and politicians called for the impeachment of George W. Bush.

By Michelle Goldberg

<snip>

"I'm not doing this to fail," he said. "This goes back to a little bit of my civil rights background. We were in an impossible situation. The civil rights leaders came to Martin King and said, please, we hear you're going to start a civil rights movement in the South, you'll get all of us killed, Martin, don't do that!" But if he hadn't, said Conyers, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 would never have passed.

"We've lost more rights and constitutional prerogatives in this short period of time than under any president that my studies reveal," he continued. "So now's the time. What we have to do is, we have to work on faith. We have to believe that there are enough American people who will agree with us that enough is enough. We've got to believe that, and we've got to work on that between now and November, and I think we'll win."

***

Others recognized that for impeachment to even be a possibility, Democrats must retake at least one house of Congress in November. Holtzman proclaimed her faith that the people, once awakened, will save their country at the voting booth. "Too many people have been just despondent about what the president has done, and have not understood that the Constitution itself foresaw this kind of behavior and created a remedy. And once people know that, they can become empowered to act. And I believe that if enough people know, then if the Congress doesn't create select committee, they may change the Congress!"

***

Some of the panelists argued that if Bush is not removed, America's very foundations would rot beyond repair. "The American people are finally going to get it, I hope, about President Bush," said Holtzman. "And if they don't get it, what democracy will we have left?" Ratner spoke with similar urgency. "We're talking about moving from a republic to tyranny," he said. "It's getting too late. If this doesn't happen now, if we can't hold him accountable now, we're not going to get our liberty back."

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/03/03/impeachment/

[im10ashus]

30. Kicking and bookmarking.

There's lots of good information here. I love this quote:

"The American people are finally going to get it, I hope, about President Bush," said Holtzman. "And if they don't get it, what democracy will we have left?"

Indeed.

[Hissyspit]

33. kick

[Stephanie]

34. kick for cspan

ty cspan!

[xiamiam]

36. the media will not help...but the internet can...send emails to everyone

you know...ask them to do the same...be relentless...educate....make sure everyone you know understands the criminal behavior and executive tyranny of this administration....time for action is now....

[jen4clark]

38. Kick!

In case anyone's around who hasn't signed Rep Conyer's message as a citizen co-sponsor:

http://www.johnconyers.com/index.asp?Type=SUPERFORMS&SEC={29336D51-F9AE-474D-8C08-8D69902D5149}

Watched the forum on CSpan2 this morning. What a needed boost! Can't even imagine being there in person! Thanks Stephanie!