I was, again, appalled at how the Republicans went after Clinton when I watched this video.

Bill Moyers Shames Corporate Media and Speaker Pelosi over Impeachment
Submitted by dlindorff on Sat, 2007-07-14 22:50. By Dave Lindorff

Bill Moyers has put impeachment in the news, in the process shaming both the national media and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the rest of the Congressional leadership.

In his Saturday program, Bill Moyers Journal, Moyers and guests John Nichols, the Nation's Washington correspondent and author of The Genius of Impeachment and Bruce Fein, a former attorney in the Ronald Reagan Department of Justice, made it clear that the Bush/Cheney administration has gravely threatened the Constitution and the survival of tripartite, devided government.

Moyers, feigning astonishment at the arguments of Nichols and Fein, asked if it might be justified for the Bush administration to grab special dictatorial powers in order to combat terrorism. His argument was demolished by both Nichols and Fein.

Nichols explained that the Constitution had been designed by the Founders to be a "fighting" document, capable of handling dangerous times. He noted that the Constitution actually provides for the temporary barring of habeas corpus (the right to have one's imprisonment brought before a court and adjudicated), but he said that this was something that a president had to do witht the approval of Congress, and only if the Country was under attack, which is of course not the case right now.

Fein for his part noted that most of Bush's and Cheney's abuses of power and violations of the Constitution and the rule of law have been done not openly and in consultation with Congress, but in secret and in the dark of night. His secret monitoring of American's communications--phones, mail and internet--for example, went on in for four years before it was exposed in an article in the New York Times. And the president has still not explained to anyone why he felt the need to break the law.

Fein and Nichols both blasted the current Democratic leadership of Congress for cowardice, lack of principle, and a basic failure to honor their oaths of office to uphold and defend the Constitution, in refusing to impeach the president. Fein said that in earlier administratiions, there were always at least a few members of Congress who were honorable enough to put country and the Constitution above party. "We don't have anyone like that in Congress now," he said.

Actually, it was one failing of Moyers' program that neither he nor his two guests mentioned that there actually are some such honorable members of the current congress. They did not mention that Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), has filed a bill of impeachment against Vice President Cheney, and that his bill currently has 14 co-sponsors, with more people signing on every week. They also failed to mention that Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) only days before the program, declared in no uncertain terms that Bush and Cheney should be impeached, saying that the country was "closer to dictatorship than it has ever been" because of the president's assertion of "unitary executive" powers to ignore laws passed by the Congress."

Despite this one shortcoming, Moyers' program is a public shaming of the tawdry and shameless corporate media, which has ignored the exploding impeachment movement blossoming across the nation, pretending that it doesn't even exist, or that it is the province of a few leftist wackos.

In fact, as Moyers noted, the most recent poll on the issue shows that half of Americans want both Bush and Cheney impeached and removed from office.

It will be interesting to see what impact the powerful Moyers program has.

While not watched by too many ordinary Americans, the program is influential among professional journalists and editors, and among liberals and progressives, who will be increasing their pressure on Democratic leaders to act.

Pelosi's efforts to block impeachment and keep it "off the table", will continue to look more and more pitiful and self-serving.

The next challenge will be a march on July 23 from Arlington Cemetary to the office of Rep. John Conyers, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and the man who has the power to kick-start hearings on impeachment--in particular to schedule hearings on the Kucinich bill (H Res. 333). (Click on the banner to the left for more information.)

A sit-in is planned in Conyers' office if he won't meet with the delegation, which will be headed by Cindy Sheehan, the anti-war and impeachment activist whose son was killed in action in Iraq.

Video & Transcript: http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07132007/watch.html

In Clinton v. Jones the Court held unanimously, based on a line of precedent dating back to nearly the 16th century, that there is No Immunity For Unofficial Conduct.

How is it then that everyone thinks the only method of redress lay within the impeachment process? If the president and staff breaks a State Law outside the confines of "official conduct" (e.g. failing to fulfill the executive branch exception provisions under FISA), then state law controls.

"The President's political authority is controlled by the impeachment decision while the President's (and Vice President's, etc.) individual accountability is controlled by STATE and federal law. The accountability of all federal officers as citizens to the criminal laws is the unifying theme of our system. This point was made most eloquently in 1882 in United States v. Lee :

"No man in this country is so high that he is above the law. No officer of the law may set that law at defiance with impunity. All officers of the government, from the highest to the lowest, are creatures of the law and are bound to obey it.

It is the only supreme power in our system of government, and every man who by accepting office participates in its functions is only the more strongly bound to submit to that supremacy. . . .""


(From Pillar to Post: The Prosecution of American Presidents, 37 Am. Crim. L. Rev. 1049)

BTW, did you know that Electronic Eavesdropping is a Class E Felony in New York?

Did you also know that no branch of government, or department thereof, created under the New York State Constitution has the power to Amend the New York State Constitution?

Can you imagine how difficult it would be for a NYS Attorney General to exercise "prosecutorial discretion," i.e. refusing to indict a President and U.S. Attorney General who have publicly confessed to committing the aforesaid NY Felony of Eavesdropping, when the NYS Constitution reads:

NYS Constitution, Article I, Section 12

"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

The right of the people to be secure against unreasonable interception of telephone and telegraph communications shall not be violated, and ex parte orders or warrants shall issue only upon oath or affirmation that there is reasonable ground to believe that evidence of crime may be thus obtained, and identifying the particular means of communication, and particularly describing the person or persons whose communications are to be intercepted and the purpose thereof."

Anyway, in the 1965 film Flight Of The Phoenix, the part of the German airplane designer was played by Hardy Kruger.

If you can imagine that role played by Lewis Black (comedian), then you'd have a glimpse at how I feel about all this.

SIYOM,

Bob

Would that be Robert The Cookie Monster?

I'm glad, if that's the case!

Forgot to say that good for Bill Moyers. He's MAKING them talk about it.

Feinstein looks like a fool because it is plain to almost anybody that the man is a pathological liar and criminal to boot!

The media should be ashamed of itself.

To further highlight what Culper721 pointed out, the Supreme Court ruled that the president was not immune from being sued for UNOFFICIAL CONDUCT, i.e., could be sued as long as the transgression was unrelated to his (Clinton's) official duties. That brings up an interesting (albeit absurd) legal question - were Bush and Cheney's complicity with regard to 9/11 unrelated to their official duties?

Richard,

What's up?

Raoul Duke: "There was only one road back to L.A. - US Interstate 15. Just a flat out high speed burn through Baker, Barstow & Berdoo. Then onto the Hollywood Freeway, into frantic oblivion; safety, obscurity. Just another freak, in the freak kingdom.

We'd gone in search of the American dream; it had been a lame Fu(# around. A waste of time.

There was no point in looking back. Fu(# no, not today, thank you kindly. My heart was filled with joy. I felt like a monster reincarnation of Horatio Alger; a man on the move and just sick enough to be totally confident."

Instead of slamming your head against the castle wall, you might want to check around back for an open door or window first.

I've done everything aside from constructing a billboard regarding the huge opening left by the illegal wiretapping confessions; predicated on ... what? 911?

Nonetheless, it appears as if everyone on this board is fixated on the idea that they need to have the entire kaleidoscopic picture of fraud, along with an alternative theory at hand, before taking a step forward.

The impossibility of Flight 11 and the residual heat at the remains of the towers is more than enough to leave the opposition with a slack jaw and those they try to protect the proponents of said fraud with a noose around their necks.

But hey; what do I know?

Raoul Duke: "There was only one road back to L.A. - US Interstate 15. Just a flat out high speed burn through Baker, Barstow & Berdoo. Then onto the Hollywood Freeway, into frantic oblivion; safety, obscurity. Just another freak, in the freak kingdom.

We'd gone in search of the American dream; it had been a lame Fu(# around. A waste of time.

There was no point in looking back. Fu(# no, not today, thank you kindly. My heart was filled with joy. I felt like a monster reincarnation of Horatio Alger; a man on the move and just sick enough to be totally confident."

Good to see you Robert!

Right! Well, if we just had 2 ounces of dignity in the JustUs Department, we might get a few indictments filed. But needless to say, Albertito has things totally corrupted.

I never thought I would see the day where I had anything good to say about Ashcroft, but sometimes I kinda miss the guy. Yikes! Those are suicide thoughts! :ph43r:

Exactly

Imagine this - Cheney is sued by victims' families, and point to his being in charge of the war games going on that day. While being complicit in the 9/11 attacks was of course not a part of his official duties, it would be construed by the courts that his running the war games WAS. Absurd, of course, but an out for the courts to throw out the case.

Richard,

Rights confer power; not vice versa. Yes?

Yes.

And States confer power upon the Fed; not vice versa; yes?

Yes.

Did the States ever confer the power to "exercise of power beyond right, which no body can have a right to" to the Fed?


"When the governor, however intitled, makes not the law, but his will, the rule; and his commands and actions are not directed to the preservation of the properties of his people, but the satisfaction of his own ambition, revenge, covetousness, or any other irregular passion"....[We New Yorkers call that an act of EPIC NAUGHTY]

And, as stated earlier, in Clinton v. Jones; There is no immunity for Unofficial Conduct; much less acts of EPIC NAUGHTY.

And when it comes to acts of "Epic Naughty," lest we forget that Article I, Section 14 of the New York State Constitution contains a clear cut "F-you; pay me" clause.

lol

SIYOM,

Bob


Raoul Duke: "There was only one road back to L.A. - US Interstate 15. Just a flat out high speed burn through Baker, Barstow & Berdoo. Then onto the Hollywood Freeway, into frantic oblivion; safety, obscurity. Just another freak, in the freak kingdom.

We'd gone in search of the American dream; it had been a lame Fu(# around. A waste of time.

There was no point in looking back. Fu(# no, not today, thank you kindly. My heart was filled with joy. I felt like a monster reincarnation of Horatio Alger; a man on the move and just sick enough to be totally confident."

Bob

It's always nice to have your legal angle on any given subject.

It's too bad we don't have a country where every man is equal before the law. It's too bad we've lost the rule of law in this country.

The system works; eventually.

However, when you're behind by 8 and it's 1st and 10 at your own two yard line with 4 minutes to go, I'm not sure if you should pray to St. Jude or St. John Elway.

Call me the Eternal Optimist, but I think it is still possible for the Judiciary to save this country.

Long shot, but possible.

That's what precision's all about.

Ya need a determined & focused Quarterback

For ...

THE DRIVE


Elway to Karliss before the kick "It's just like practice....It's just like practice...."

I've come to my senses Bob.

After the fiasco in Conyer's office yesterday, it is perfectly obvious that the american experiment with democracy is over. And it did not end yesterday--that was merely one more nail in the coffin.

And Elway will not be able to save us, nor will Roberts and his cronies in black.

:ph43r:

Stock phrases Richard.

It's all about stock phrases.

Legal arguments are built on "Stock Phrases."

Takes a lot of time to practice and hone stock phrases; especially the ones we use in legal argumentation. Engaging in argument on, oh let's say something like The New York Times Supreme Court Forum helps quite a bit in the practice department.

And what did Elway repeatedly say to Karliss, while approaching the bench, just before the final kick?

"It's just like practice ....It's just like practice...."

Further On Up The Road, you'll find out I wasn't lyin'.

SIYOM,

Bob

Bob

I know you're not lyin'. B)

It's just sometimes I feel like I'm talking to The Riddler or something...