NH Progressive Blogs
Betsy Devine
Citizen Keene
Democracy for NH
Equality Press
The Political Climate
Granite State Progress
Chaz Proulx
Susan the Bruce
NH Political Links
Graniteprof
Granite Status
Kevin Landrigan
NH Political Capital
Political Chowder (TV)
Political Chowder (AM)
PolitickerNH
Pollster (NH-Sen)
Portside with Burt Cohen
Bill Siroty
Swing State 2008
Campaigns, Et Alia.
Carol Shea-Porter
Paul Hodes
Jeanne Shaheen
Barack Obama (NH)
ActBlue Hampshire
Stop Sununu
NHDP
DCCC
DSCC
DNC
National
Bob Geiger
DailyKos
Digby
Eschaton
FiveThirtyEight
MyDD
The Next Hurrah
Open Left
Senate Guru
Swing State Project
Talk Left
Talking Points Memo
50 State Blog Network
Alabama
Arizona
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
John Lynch will be New Hampshire's governor for at least one more term. No one, Democrat or Republican, has the slightest doubt.
Sure, there is a Republican nominee. But his party seems to want nothing to do with Joe Kenney. Republicans are exceptionally comfortable with the current governor. Democrats less so.
Lynch has continued in the tradition of Jeanne Shaheen. One well-seasoned Concord observer calls Lynch "the best Republican governor since Jeanne Shaheen."
One big difference is Lynch has never been in the position Shaheen was when, as governor, she single-handedly crushed that unique moment in New Hampshire history when the votes were there for real tax reform, and a fair and just conclusion to the education-funding crisis. He hasn't had to and many Democrats in Concord are grumbling.
But outside the State House, Lynch is clearly very popular. I wonder if there are any 4th-graders who have not met, and been impressed by the governor. And when it comes to floods and tornadoes, citizens know he is right there, actively, genuinely helping. John Lynch is in his prime in such situations, and that is not a bad thing at all. The ship of state seems steady indeed under Captain John Lynch.
But a lot of Democrats feel there's a more important matter than John Lynch: a little something called the education-funding crisis. New Hampshire has remained without a solution since the Supreme Court's ruling in 1997. I wonder if anyone can keep count of the number of times the problem has been swept under the rug. The bump is getting mighty big.
The tax system remains unfair. Moderate-income families pay too much of their income while the wealthiest pay less than their fair share.
Lynch's approach, a constitutional amendment, was the same old theme: the state still ducking its responsibility. Meanwhile many House and Senate Democrats chafe on their leash. Every now and then a rebellion surfaces. It seems some really, really want a solution.
Though many Democrats are (understandably) reluctant to speak on the record, Michael Blastos, Keene's mayor from 2000 through 2008, says, "The state shouldn't turn its back on the Constitution." He didn't say (and I didn't ask) who he's voting for, but he did say, "I admire Katy Forry. She's got courage."
Who? Seeing that no one else would do it, this retired teacher from Jaffrey put her name on the Sept. 9 primary ballot for governor. Her reason is simple: property taxes are unfair and are hurting too many. Forry recognizes The Pledge is a hindrance.
Governing requires leadership. Our system is broken and needs fixing. Surely someone like John Lynch, with political capital consistently hovering around 80 percent, can, every now and then, afford a risk.
But how big can that bump get? One of these days, New Hampshire needs to lift up that carpet and face the mess square on. Forry's candidacy is the voice of insistence for a fair and equitable solution, providing all our kids with decent education no matter where they live, at last fixing our broken, unfair tax system. Many Democrats want that voice to be heard.
Hillary Clinton inspired me. Yes, you read that right.
In the end her solid endorsement of former rival Barack Obama set an example for all of us who want real change.
As is widely known, Jeanne Shaheen and I have not always seen eye to eye on every issue. On such issues as the death penalty and the income tax, and her 2002 support of the war in Iraq, she clearly has not been entirely in tune with what Paul Wellstone called the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party.
But as House Finance Chair Marjorie Smith so wisely advised: "Never let the perfect be the enemy of the good."
We all have our different takes on what works electorally in the Granite State. Some see bold as the way to win, others see caution.
The main thing voters look for is authenticity. Voters easily see through the phonies.
Jeanne Shaheen is who she is. Her approach has always been to tack to the perceived middle. And though it is not identical to my style (which worked in seven straight elections), the fact is, with the exception of one election, it has worked well for her. Now, at the urging of many in the Democratic Party, she's picked up the mantle and is running again. It's a grind, raising all that money, putting one's family through it all again. It is not about glory, it is about putting the common good first, making personal sacrifices to make a new agenda a reality.
Is Jeanne Shaheen the left-leaning Democrat's ideal candidate? Obviously not. Is Barack Obama the Clintonites ideal? Same answer.
But the reality is if he is elected President, Obama can't get his agenda into law by himself. He'll need solid majorities in both the House and the Senate. John E. Sununu stands in the way of the change we so desperately need.
Between now and the November election, former Clinton supporters will put their disappointment aside and recognize the importance of such issues as the war, the economy, health care, and who will sit on the next Supreme Court. They will not vote for McCain.
When New Hampshire progressives, moderates, and especially traditional conservatives take a look at who John E. Sununu has become, they'll have an easy time supporting Jeanne Shaheen.
Sununu voted seven times to raise the debt ceiling. It's not NH-style fiscal conservatism to create the largest national debt in the history of the world. .
It's not in our economic interest to give tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas. Four times he voted to do just that.
It is in our intense national interest to support renewable energy through tax breaks and incentives for this increasingly important sector of our economy. Sununu voted against it. He did cast the deciding vote to protect $13 billion in tax giveaways to oil and gas interests. Whose agenda is served?
Helping families cope with college costs through a tuition tax credit? Not Sununu.
Serving small businesses in the research and development sector? Again, not our senator.
Jeanne Shaheen is ever sensitive to the Republicans. Sununu must figure he has them anyway. I wouldn't be so sure this year.
A centrist Jeanne Shaheen is preferable to a Bush neo-con devotee.
The next president may get to appoint three supreme court justices. On issues like reproductive rights, protection of traditional civil liberties, wiretapping of citizens, Jeanne Shaheen is certainly more in step with traditional New Hampshire values than neo-con go-along John E Sununu.
Polls have Jeanne Shaheen ahead of Sununu. As they did for most 2002, when she was defeated. Unity and effort is needed.
As Hillary genuinely endorsed Obama after hammering him, after my own criticisms of Shaheen, I wholeheartedly endorse Shaheen for US Senate. As Clinton's sometimes annoying attacks on Obama made him a stronger candidate, there is reason to believe critiques offered to Shaheen have been constructive.
I believe she's fired up and ready to go.
Remember when then-candidate Hillary Clinton staged a news conference
at a gas station to call for a gas tax holiday for the summer driving months
saving the average driver maybe $25 over three months?
Voters were clearly a lot smarter than she gave them credit for and saw
through the self-serving gimmick. We deserve better than a cheap pander. We
need a solution which will save us $25 a day, not a season.
More recently New Hampshire's lone Democratic US Senate candidate
Jeanne Shaheen held her own news conference at gas stations in Portsmouth
and Keene to call not for change, but instead for ways to revive the
care-free days of cheap gas-guzzling.
She wants oil companies to increase production and build more
refineries, release 30 million barrels from the strategic petroleum reserve
(same as the Republicans), and lean on OPEC to also increase production. So
Shaheen's approach is not change, just more of the same: over-consumption.
But like the gas tax holiday scheme, bogus tinkering with the supply
does nothing. The only answer is to reduce demand.
Again, the people are way ahead on this one.
Enough of band-aids. Our government must be a force to reduce petroleum
demand. People are ready for that change.
Instead of calling for a windfall oil profits tax, with the money going
to an investment fund for alternative energy development, we hear, "End tax
breaks for Big Oil and create tax incentives for the development" of such
energy. It may be subtle, but there's a big difference, especially to the
profits of the oil companies who have been dictating energy policy for too
long.
As state senator and governor, Shaheen was widely appreciated for her
reliable opposition to nuclear power, which remains absurdly expensive and
unrealistic. Now I read in the Keene Sentinel: "Nuclear energy remains an
option, too, Shaheen said." What exactly is going on here?
Democrats need to defeat John Sununu. Obama is going to need all the
Democrats he can get to bring the real change we hunger for. The time has
passed for cautious, middle of the road, same old same old. A new approach
to America's energy future is requied. American ingenuity is there, eagerly
waiting to be put to use. More of the same is not the change we need.
Party insiders may become apoplectic and call me a heretic for offering
constructive criticism of the senate candidate. But I have to say, if they
would just stop dishing out this tripe, I wouldn't be forced to call them on
it. And trust me, I am hardly alone on this.
So far, as we've seen before, the Shaheen campaign is playing it safe.
But it is still early, the candidate has time to show some courage and
leadership.
But so far, could there be anything easier than to say than "Gas prices
are too high"? Come on, we can do a lot better.
Pandering gets you nothing. Voters are ready for the truth. We need new
policies that understand that cheap oil is a thing of the past. Clinging to
the notion that we can return to those days is completely out of touch with
reality. Instead we need an Apollo-like program developing real energy
alternatives. In the meantime, how about greater tax credits for hybrid
vehicles? And why not consider regulating the oil companies as the public
utilites they in fact are?
Now is hardly the time for timidity.The gas tax holiday was empty
pandering that didn't work. What works is the courage to forge a new path.
There's still time and I'm hopeful Shaheen will take the lead.
Seven years ago this month, a plaque honoring the New Hampshire veterans of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade came down from the Statehouse wall the same day it was put up.
Lincoln vet Abe Osheroff observed, "If you need a victory, you aren't a fighter, you're an opportunist."
The defenders of the Spanish Republic were not victorious in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) but the struggle against fascism alone made the effort worthwhile. On March 30, 2008, at the dedication of the first national monument to the Lincoln Brigade, the Spanish Ambassador to the US thanked the vets for their sacrifice in defense of freedom against Franco's tyranny that was to follow.
Abe Osheroff spoke from his wheelchair at the ceremony. He died one week later.
Today there is a deep widespread yearning for role models. Though not (yet) in history books, Abe Osheroff was a moral leader, a role model for generations to come. Today his obituary is travelling around the world.
Abe gave seven decades of uninterrupted political activism and lived to see his words immortalized in onyx on the San Francisco Embarcadero: "If you look out the window and see a hungry, emaciated child and do not feel -- not just pain, but a desire to do something to make the world a little better - then you're not a complete human being."
Before volunteering to fight in Spain, as a teenager in Brooklyn, Osheroff helped families evicted from their homes in the Depression, enduring police beatings in the process. After seeing newsreel footage of Nazi planes bombing the undefended town of Guernica, Abe went to defend Spain with the Lincoln Brigade, men and women, black and white together, not because of any self-interest. It was simply the right thing to do.
Osheroff wrote of the resistance of the Spanish people, "Madrid glowed like a beacon in the darkness of appeasement and surrender and became the conscience of the world." FDR later recognized his failure to help Spain as "the gravest mistake I ever made." Somebody had to do something, that's why Abe and 2800 other Americans, with at least a dozen from NH, put their lives on the line.
So in violation of the US neutrality law (which let the Nazis know we wouldn't stand in their way), he sailed for Spain. His boat torpedoed and sunk, Osheroff swam the two miles to Spain.
He shared drinks (and later fought) with Ernest Hemingway (the writer eating well in nice hotels, Osheroff starving in trenches). Then in the McCarthy period, Osheroff was labeled a "premature antifascist," as if that was a bad thing.
His left leg smashed by machine gun fire, Abe returned to the US in 1938 and then, after Pearl Harbor joined the US Army, which, he said, "was a lark compared to Spain. I never missed a meal. I had good shoes, I had tremendous medical attention...we had none of that in Spain."
In 1964, the night he arrived for Freedom Summer in Mississippi Abe's car was firebombed. If you went to Nicaragua in 1985, you'd find the skilled carpenter building a village there, "As my mother would say, if there's trouble, that's where he'll be."
In 1971 he went back to Spain, and made an award winning documentary, "Dreams and Nightmares," which gave him a new career: traveling to universities and high schools to lecture and show the film.
Right until the end, he really connected with kids. In 2002, Abe sent me a note (with a campaign contribution) where he mentioned, "Only yesterday, I addressed my youngest audience ever: Two classes of kids 8-11 on the subject I call 'The Good Life,' which went well. Came away tired but happy."
He said to them, "We all have a choice: We can choose to be made by history, or we can choose to participate in making history."
Abe Osheroff was an authentic, courageous, and moral leader. Though his income was always moderate, Abe said, "I'm having a wonderful life. I'm richer than Bill Gates."
He made history in some of the most important political and social moments of the 20th century. He and all of the Lincoln Brigade deserve to be etched in memory.
Someday New Hampshire will also recognize those brave idealistic Granite Staters who put their own self-interest aside to take on fascism and fight the good fight, along with Abe. In honoring them, we honor our own best nature.
Harry Truman said, "It's amazing how much you can get done if you don't care who gets the credit." But every now and then, egos do get involved in politics. Shocking, I know.
Candidates for public office must never have so much ego invested that they lose sight of the real purpose, which is the the Rotary motto: Service above self.
You can guess the subject I'm about to address: the formerly inevitable nominee Hillary Clinton. Clearly the Clintons (and both she and Bill are the candidate, let's face it) never expected this yourg upstart, Barack Obama, to pose any thrreat at all.
From the very start, it was all about her. Now thrashing about wildly, desperate in search of some message, any message, that might serve her and hurt Obama brings this point home.
After each loss, Senator Clinton blames each caucus and primary loss not on herself, but on special issue activists. It's as if she thinks the party would, and should, just come supplicant to her. Again, it's all about her.
Clinton looked petty, trying to spoon-feed the national media the word "plagiarism" when Obama echoed words used by his friend Deval Patrick, with his encouragement. Yet when she and Bill directly steal line after line from Obama, that's okay. The difference must be that she's the entitled one, Obama a pretender to the throne that is hers.
But Americans are determined to bring change. So Hillary says she'll bring change too. The Clintons rely on old machine politicians. That's how it's always been done. Now the Clintons want 100 Clinton supporters to each give $100,000 to fund its $10 million "American Leadership Project" attacks in Ohio and Texas. But that is clearly not where the Democratic Party is in 2008.
The change from red to blue in New Hampshire is happening from the bottom up, from excitement and insistence on real change. It was not handed down from party leadership.
The threat to party strength and unity is not from people who stand up to the self-perpetuating machine. The threat is when candidates' self-service blatantly outweighs sincere public service.
For example, as Clinton mires herself in bitterness and vitriolic attacks against Obama, it is she who brings harm to our party. There is concern that she'll try to seat illegal Michigan and Florida delegates, where there was no competition in the banned primaries. That would kill our chances in November.
Politics is not about serving self. When it become so, citizens turn away in disgust. A candidate must agree to be an instrument for promoting an agenda, a set of positions and values. I think of the honorable John Edwards. Self-serving and entitlement is repugnant to most people, and to the basic tenets of our founders' notion of self-government.
What's threatens the party is when Clinton devotees try to fix blame on "the media," or on those many voices within the Demoratic Party who demand a party which is about real change. About more than just the old "get elected at any cost, go along to get along, support the war when it's popular, oppose it when it's no longer in vogue, whatever works." We've got to do better. And as Obama says Yes We Can. Oh, yes, Hillary said that too.
We Democrats are looking strong despite the old team's frustrations. But when it becomes about preserving the power of the establishment,or some notion of entitlement, the party loses. Obama, and our hope and optimism, do indeed have some momentum. Let's continue to unfiy around that.
Under normal circumstances, given their similarities, there'd be no question that having Hillary Clinton topping the ticket would just about guarantee a US Senate win for Jeanne Shaheen. But these are not normal circumstances.
It's a tale of two husbands.
First you had Clinton national co-chair Bill Shaheen reminding a reporter that Barack Obama had youthful drug indiscretions back in his youth. Oh, the national Clinton campaign very publicly wrung its hands of the whole disturbing episode. Mr.Shaheen fell on his sword for the good of the campaign. But the word was successfully gotten out there and it had it's intended effect.
Now comes the other potential first husband, former President Bill Clinton. After his Iowa win, Barack Obama found out he had not one but two opponents. This Bill attacked as a "fairy tale" the fact that Barack Obama consistently opposed to the Iraq war from the start.
And so the nastiness began. The Clintons shifted into full throttle with the former president transforming into hatchet man for Hillary.
In contrast to a campaign perhaps naively based on hope, the Clintons campaign instead turns cynically to the old Machiavellian school of politics. Blatantly dishonest, intentional distortions are okay since they work.
A distortive and clearly dishonest last minute sneak attack by the Clintons campaign against Obama has already hurt Shaheen. It was a letter sent to a wide list of pro-choice New Hampshire women, which said Obama was "unwilling to take a stand for choice." Never mind that Obama has a 100% pro-choice record. Prominent Obama supporter Mary Rauh was quoted as saying "I can't tell you how it distresses me...how horrified I am that the Clinton campaign would do this." Unchastened, there are reports the Clintons campaign continues to do it in other states.
The Clintons camp also kept Obama poll checkers away from their stations in Nashua to lower Obama's turnout. Ugly stuff.
The damage caused by the Clintons campaign not only destroys the former president's legacy but also rubs off on Shaheen, should one Clinton actually become the nominee. The link is anything but positive for Shaheen. Obama has a lot of supporters in New Hampshire who are angry at the machine, and that can not help Shaheen.
While it is true the pro-choice community is trying to heal the rift, because all Democrats are better on reproductive rights than any Republican, some unusually bad blood remains here in New Hampshire.
Both Hillary Clinton and Jeanne Shaheen depend on an aura of inevitability. And they are both widely recognized as the ultimate party establishment candidates.
There are a heck of a lot more voters and activists than there are lock-step party insiders. People wearing Shaheen stickers at events have whispered to me that while they have to keep up appearances because of the fearsome Shaheen Machine, in the private voting booth they'll do what they want.
Then there's the blogosphere. Here's one sample entry: "Most Obama supporters are very mad...Not only are they going to cast their vote against Hillary but also cast their vote against the former governor of NH [who] is running for a senate seat."
Even if they win their party nominations, there could be a heavy price the Clintons and Shaheens have to pay for demonizing the much-loved and respected Barack Obama.
Burt Cohen served as state senator from 1990-2004 and now hosts a talk show heard on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays at 5 PM
As is the custom in New Hampshire this time of year, I recently asked a woman in a coffee shop who she was supporting for president.
Her answer: "The last candidate I heard speak." the point is we have a remarkable group of candidates, so it's no surprise most voters remain undecided.
As the date gets closer and more and more people ask who I'm with. After many months consideration, I've finally made my choice.
Kucinich deserves to do well in New Hampshire. His bold and uncompromising vision needs to be heard.
Bill Richardson would make a great chief executive, with his unmatched experience. But inspiring personal presentation (also called charisma) is a job requirement which is not his strength.
Chris Dodd is consistent on every issue, and is a terrific speaker. I wish his numbers were at least as high as Kucinich. Same goes for Joe Biden: great on the issues, a captivating speaker too. Just not connecting enough.
That leaves the "top three." Before the Republicans have laid a glove on her, Clinton starts out with 50% of Americans saying they would never vote for her. She's relied on an engineered aura of inevitability. She buys into the all-things-to-all-people style, the course laid out for Kerry by his political director Jeanne Shaheen. Straddling everything doesn't win.
Some people say it's time for a woman. Martin Luther King hoped we would judge people by the content of their character, not by their color, or by extension, their gender.
A new direction? What about support for the war in Iraq, her prideful refusal to accept that she made a mistake, her unconscionable vote declaring part of Iran's government to be a terrorist organization (giving Bush the carte blanche to attack). Her commitment to keeping combat troops in Iraq and her refusal to say she'd get them all out by 2013. Her blatant pandering to the right on flag-burning, and on late term abortions. And then there's planting softball questions for himself to answer.
Experience? Aside from spouse of the president, I can't seem to remember her cabinet post.
New Hampshire voters, at crunch-time, consider both issues and win-ability. She's got neither. The GOP knows her nomination would be a gift to them. Two recent polls showed Clinton is the only Democrat all five Republicans would beat. New Hampshire has an enormous responsibility now. We owe it to the country to select a stronger candidate.
I've always liked Edwards very much. His vision of two Americas is dead on, his values are exactly what we need. His dedication to health care reform is a shot in the arm. His wife Elizabeth is a huge asset. She's the better candidate here.
So here I am: Barack Obama. His star didn't fade, as I worried it might. Young people remain enthusiastic, an advantage which can hardly be overstated. And it's important to remember that he clobbered his Republican opponent in southern Illinois, which is indeed The South.
Obama was a constitutional law professor. Wow, do we need that. Yes he's young, just three years older than John Kennedy was. Sure, others have more experience, like his distant cousin Dick Cheney. But he has vision, he has sincerity, and he's got amazing momentum and steadiness.
Barack Obama may not be perfect, but as State Rep Marjorie Smith once told me "Never let the perfect be the enemy of the good." Barack Obama can, and I believe, will win. He can unite all patriotic Americans, and make us proud to be Americans in the world once again. With a boost from New Hampshire, he can dramatically help achieve the as yet unrealized potential of our nation.
The campaign was pumped. Between four and five thousand people jammed a campaign rally in Portsmouth, featuring the undisputed Democratic front runner Senator Hillary Clinton. And oh yes, her husband, former President Bill Clinton was also there.
The important political question is: what percentage of the crowd came to see Bill Clinton, and how many of the crowd are supporting Hillary Clinton?
I've spoken to many people who were there. My unscientific, yet surprisingly consistent sample revealed that they all went to see the former president, and also, sure, also take a look at Hillary. Each came away either still undecided or still supporting their candidate. For most I spoke to, that was Obama.
At a well attended fundraiser for John Lynch, the goveror asked for a show of hands, who had chosen a candidate. Three hands in a crowd of about 70 opinion leaders went up.
Very revealing.
The Labor Day corner has been turned. As the summer ends, the limited universe of activists has pretty much settled into one camp or another. Now the real campaign, the effort to win the life-beyond-politics primary voter begins. For most of us, the New Hampshire priimary has just barely begun.
The road to the White House is littered with summer front-runners. As fall approaches, there is the inevitability factor for Senator Clinton, but deeper than that, who knows.
One thing Granite State voters, both Democrat and Republican, always look for is authenticity. Many at the rally got the sense that every word was poll tested. I asked a thoughful Hillary supporter her reason for that support. She said it's because Senator Clinton knows how to "walk the fine line." That's exactly the point. Merely offending the fewest just doesn't cut it. That's not leadership and people sense it.
Caution sometimes works, but not usually. Jeanne Shaheen, with an acknowledged reputation for consistently hewing the middle of the middle, obviously got elected governor three times. But on the other hand, when she served as national co-chair of the Kerry campaign, the general election strategy became balancing on the microscopic center of the proverbial fence. But being not-George Bush was just not enough. Who exactly was John Kerry? By November, no one knew. Again, authenticity was missing in action and he lost because of it (well, GOP shenanigans in Ohio were also a factor, as was his distancing from running mate Edwards).
Primary voters are hungry to have faith in their leaders restored. We can sense insincerity a mile away. Kerry's handlers did not get this, and it appears Hillary Clinton's handlers may be of the same mind set.
All things to all people may still occasionally work, but as 2006 showed, the strategy is less and less effective. What worked last November for people like Carol Shea-Porter and Paul Hodes was that, after taking a measure of them, voters had no doubt they were for real. This unmistakable authenticity will work for them again in 2008. People respect, and vote for, candidates whom they trust to mean what they say, even if they may not agree on every issue. Trust me, from my own electoral history, I know what I'm talking about.
There is a large degree of theater in politics. If your story line climaxes too early, like in the summer, where are you at the dramatic moment in January when the votes are actually cast? Richardson, Dodd, and Biden have not peaked too early. There's a lot of drama left in this play.
The presidential primary is wide open. At this point, in September 2003, Dean looked inevitable. But as that great sage Yogi Berra put it, "It ain't over till it's over." It's just beginning.
In a letter to constituents, Congressman Barney Frank argues against impeachment. As a pragmatic progressive, it might appear to be the height of hubris for me to disagree with him. He is an old personal friend for whom I have nothing but respect. But, dare I say it, he?s wrong. America needs impeachment.
As always, his approach is a practical one. ?The fact is there is zero chance of an impeachment proceeding resulting in the removal...(since this would put many members who concurred with administration policies) in the difficult position of voting in effect to impeach themselves.?
Excellent point, until you look at the text of HR 333, which offers members of congress significant distance: ?Article I: The Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, has purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and the Congress of the United States by fabricating a threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction...?
Article II states that Cheney ?purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress about an alleged relationship between Iraq and Al-Qaeda.?
Finally Article III points out that Cheney has ?openly threatened aggression against the Republic of Iran.?
Now it is true that folks like Senator Lieberman have also threatened Iran, but on the other charges, Congress was deceived, themselves victimized by the crimes. So taking up impeachment against the vice president in no way requires members to impeach themselves. From a cold, purely political calculation, impeachment serves them well politically.
Then there is the little item of the Constitution. The framers put impeachment there to protect us from royalty. Since his tenure with Nixon, Dick Cheney has insisted that Congress has no right to participate in decisions relative to war. He argues for a unitary executive which is quite different from a constitutional presidency. In other words, the Constitution be damned.
If Congress fails to act against this assault on our foundation, that is a very dangerous precedent this congress ought not set.
The harm which has been done to our country? Torture has been institutionalized, habeas corpus eviscerated, and illegal spying made routine. Our Constitution has been trampled on. For the future of the country we love, Congress can not let them get away with it.
Conservative Constitutional scholar Bruce Fein, who served in the Reagan Justice Department, is an advocate of impeachment. He recently said on my radio show and on Bill Moyers? Journal that Cheney ?is seeking institutionally to cripple checks and balances and the authority of Congress and the judiciary...kidnapping people and throwing them in dungeons without any legal accountability are standards that are totally anathema to a democratic society devoted to the rule of law?
He points out that Cheney ?has no understanding of or respect for Congress?s critical role in the governance of our nation.? Fein is outraged that congress has not sought to ?immediately sanction his excesses...We have a Congress that basically is an invertebrate.?
Should Congress fail to impeach, Fein worries that the Constitution ?will disappear on the installment plan.?
America?s founders understood that a president is highly likely to try to over reach and for that reason put into law legislative checks and balances to the executive branch. If Congress fails to accept that responsibility, we move ominously closer to realizing the unitary executive as imagined by Cheney.
So while Barney Frank and Nancy Pelosi insist it?s not practical, the fact is we?ve seen Congress walk and chew gum at the same time. Should Congress abdicate its responsibility and take no action on impeachment, the legislative?s rightful power will have announced its surrender, a shattering deviation from our nation?s foundation. Thomas Jefferson understood that a president is not a king. For America to remain America, impeachment is essential.
The next Presidential administration has an opportunity to address the difficulties for many children which have increased under the Bush/Cheney administration. On the next Portside, Burt Cohen speaks with the leaders of Every Child Matters whose mission is to raise the visibility of children's issues and to make them a priority topic in the 2008 presidential campaign.
Get informed to make a difference. That's Portside with Burt Cohen Thursday, July 19th noon to one, streaming live at www.portsmouthcommunityradio.org , or at
106.1 FM.
He's been described by the L.A. Times as "The Best Public Speaker in the Country." On Tuesday's Portside, Burt Cohen talks with Dr. Robert Bowman, who is on a nationwide "Patriot Tour," about peace, justice, and 9-11 activism, challenging citizens to be effective in Taking Back America. This follows Bowman's talk the previous night at the Sugar Shack in Barrington. Be informed to take action. That's Portside with Burt Cohen and guest Dr. Robert Bowman, Tuesday, July 24th, noon to one, streaming live at www.portsmouthcommunityradio.org , or 106.1 FM
Blue Hampshire RSS