Yvette Clarke

Americans like to complain. Grassroots progressives, myself included, in particular like to complain. Sometimes I have seen the complaints become almost an obsession, to the detrement of actually getting things done. Nader is a perfect example of this. I have seen progressive apathy or even antipathy sink some of the most progressive and honest candidates you could ever imagine. This is the danger of being on the forefront of progress. You can get ahead of yourself, ahead of everything and wind up all alone.

Impeachment, Iraq and winning elections. Right now these really are about the most critical things. And these three things are what we really need to work hard at if we want to be a significant force in politics...and in society. I want to discuss some specific examples of people who really need our help and they deserve it because they are taking strong stands for impeachment and/or against the Iraq war. We need them...but they also need us. They need our time and our money to win so that they can fight for what we think is right.

In 2006 an amazing coalition of mainstream moderates and grassroots progressives created a tidal wave of change in Congress. Many have complained that we didn't get what we expected from our new Congress...but don't let the complaints get in the way of appreciating that what we did was amazing.

It was a damned good effort and I am proud to have been a part of it.

Just yesterday I wrote on Daily Gotham about my new Congressional Rep, Yvette Clarke, becoming the fifth Congress Critter to officially call for impeachment of Dick Cheney. Clarke has signed on to Dennis Kucinich's bill, HR 333, which are articles of impeachment against Cheney. For the full text of HR 333, go here.

Back in February I began advocating the impeachment of George Bush based on the exact articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon, an arguement widely discussed by former Congresswoman Liz Holtzman, who was part of the House committee that DID impeach Nixon. If anyone can be said to be an expert on impeaching a president, Liz is one of them.

George W. Bush pesonally authorized about 45 wiretaps without any court approval. He has also publically admitted that he has done this.

This is precisely what is covered in Article 2 of the articles of impeachment of Richard Nixon adopted by a bipartisan vote in Congress. Bush is guilty of a crime that was part of the Nixon impeachment. No new case has to be built from scratch, although Liz Holtzman ALSO argues for several more articles of impeachment built around several other areas where Bush has violated the law and/or his oath as President. But the framework for impeachment based on illegal wiretapping already exists from 1974.