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House Judiciary Trio Calls for
Impeach Cheney Hearings
By John Nichols
12/14/07 "The
Nation" -- --
Three senior members of the House Judiciary Committee have
called for the immediate opening of impeachment hearings for
Vice President Richard Cheney.
Democrats Robert Wexler of
Florida, Luis Gutierrez of Illinois and Tammy Baldwin of
Wisconsin on Friday distributed a statement, “A
Case for Hearings,” that declares, “The issues at hand
are too serious to ignore, including credible allegations of
abuse of power that if proven may well constitute high crimes
and misdemeanors under our constitution. The charges against
Vice President Cheney relate to his deceptive actions leading up
to the Iraq war, the revelation of the identity of a covert
agent for political retaliation, and the illegal wiretapping of
American citizens.”
In particular, the Judiciary
Committee members cite the recent revelation by former White
House press secretary Scott McClellan that the Vice President
and his staff purposefully gave him false information about the
outing of Valerie Plame Wilson as a covert agent as part of a
White House campaign to discredit her husband, former Ambassador
Joe Wilson. On the basis of McClellan’s statements, Wexler,
Gutierrez and Baldwin say, “it is even more important for
Congress to investigate what may have been an intentional
obstruction of justice.” The three House members argue that,
“Congress should call Mr. McClellan to testify about what he
described as being asked to ‘unknowingly [pass] along false
information.’”
Adding to the sense of urgency,
the members note that “recent revelations have shown that the
Administration including Vice President Cheney may have again
manipulated and exaggerated evidence about weapons of mass
destruction — this time about Iran’s nuclear capabilities.”
Although Wexler, Gutierrez and
Baldwin are close to Judiciary Committee chair John Conyers,
getting the Michigan Democrat to open hearings on impeachment
will not necessarily be easy. Though Conyers was a leader in
suggesting during the last Congress that both President Bush and
Vice President Cheney had committed impeachable offenses, he has
been under immense pressure from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi,
D-California, to keep Constitutional remedies for executive
excesses “off the table” in this Congress.
It is notable, however, that
Baldwin maintains warm relations with Pelosi and that Wexler, a
veteran member of the Judiciary Committee has historically had
an amiable and effective working relationship with Conyers.
There is no question that Conyers, who voted to keep open the
impeachment debate on November 7, has been looking for a way to
explore the charges against Cheney. The move by three of his key
allies on the committee may provide the chairman with the
opening he seeks, although it is likely he will need to hear
from more committee members before making any kind of break with
Pelosi — or perhaps convincing her that holding hearings on
Cheney’s high crimes and misdemeanors is different from putting
a Bush impeachment move on the table.
The most important immediate
development, however, is the assertion of an “ask” for
supporters of impeachment. Pulled in many directions in recent
months, campaigners for presidential and vice presidential
accountability have focused their attention on supporting a
House proposal by Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, a candidate
for the Democratic presidential nod, to impeach Cheney. When
Kucinich forced consideration of his resolution on November 7,
Pelosi and her allies used procedural moves to get it sent to
the Judiciary Committee for consideration. Pelosi’s hope was
that the proposal would disappear into the committee’s files.
The call for hearings by Wexler,
Gutierrez and Baldwin puts impeachment on the table, at least as
far as activists are concerned, creating a pressure point that
can serve as a reply when House Democrats who are critical of
Bush but cautious about impeachment ask: “What do you want me to
do?” The answer can now be: “Back the call for Judiciary
Committee hearings on whether to impeach Dick Cheney?”
“Some of us were in Congress
during the impeachment hearings of President Clinton. We spent a
year and a half listening to testimony about President Clinton’s
personal relations. This must not be the model for impeachment
inquires. A Democratic Congress can show that it takes its
constitutional authority seriously and hold a sober
investigation, which will stand in stark contrast to the
kangaroo court convened by Republicans for President Clinton. In
fact, the worst legacy of the Clinton impeachment - where the
GOP pursued trumped up and insignificant allegations - would be
that it discourages future Congresses from examining credible
and significant allegations of a constitutional nature when they
arise,” write Wexler, Gutierrez and Baldwin.
“The charges against Vice
President Cheney are not personal,” the House members add. “They
go to the core of the actions of this Administration, and
deserve consideration in a way the Clinton scandal never did.
The American people understand this, and a majority support
hearings according to a November 13 poll by the American
Research Group. In fact, 70 percent of voters say that Vice
President Cheney has abused his powers and 43 percent say that
he should be removed from office right now. The American people
understand the magnitude of what has been done and what is at
stake if we fail to act. It is time for Congress to catch up.”
Arguing that hearings need not
distract Congress, Wexler, Gutierrez and Baldwin note that the
focus is on Cheney for a reason: “These hearings involve the
possible impeachment of the Vice President — not our commander
in chief — and the resulting impact on the nation’s business and
attention would be significantly less than the Clinton
Presidential impeachment hearings.”
They also argue, correctly, that
the hearings are necessary if Congress is to restore its
position in the Constitutionally-defined system of checks and
balances.
“Holding hearings would put the
evidence on the table, and the evidence — not politics — should
determine the outcome,” the Judiciary Committee members explain.
“Even if the hearings do not lead to removal from office,
putting these grievous abuses on the record is important for the
sake of history. For an Administration that has consistently
skirted the constitution and asserted that it is above the law,
it is imperative for Congress to make clear that we do not
accept this dangerous precedent. Our Founding Fathers provided
Congress the power of impeachment for just this reason, and we
must now at least consider using it.”
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