Impeachment

The Month Of August: A Crisis Month In History For The American Presidency!

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Now that we have seen the month of August slip into history, it is worthwhile to look back and notice how significant the month is in Presidential history, how it is often a crisis month!

Examples include:

August 24, 1814–Great Britain invaded and burned the nation’s capitol, Washington, DC during the War of 1812, sending President James Madison and Congress fleeing to nearby Baltimore. This was the only invasion of American territory until Pearl Harbor in 1941.

August 4, 1914–World War I began in full swing, as all of the major European powers had finally declared war a week after the initial declaration. This alarmed President Woodrow Wilson issued a declaration that the United States would remain “neutral in thought, as well as action”, a statement which could not be upheld as the war progressed into a long term stalemate, leading to US entrance in 1917.

August 6 and 9, 1945–Newly inaugurated President Harry Truman, in office less than four months after the sudden death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, unleashes the atomic bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, leading to the end of World War II.

August 13, 1961–The Soviet Union begins the construction of the Berlin Wall, separating East Berlin from West Berlin, during the first year of the administration of President John F. Kennedy. It will remain a symbol of oppression until its destruction in November 1989.

August 4, 1964–The Tonkin Gulf Incident is reported during the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson, a supposed attack on US Navy ships in the Gulf of Tonkin by North Vietnamese patrol boats. This led to Johnson’s request of a resolution allowing the use of force to react to the reported aggression, and was the first step in the escalation of the war in Vietnam to a full scale conflict.

August 9, 1974–President Richard Nixon resigned from office, the first President to take such action, due to the “smoking gun” tape that showed his involvement in a coverup of the Watergate scandal. President Gerald Ford succeeded him in office, and later pardoned Nixon from prosecution, allowing Nixon to evade punishment, including being removed from office in an impeachment trial had he stayed in office.

August 2, 1990–Iraq, under Saddam Hussein, invaded its oil rich neighbor, Kuwait, alarming Saudi Arabia and other Arab and oil nations, and led to US involvement, in unison with a United Nations coalition, to force Iraq out of Kuwait, but also putting US troops for the first time in the Middle East, and inciting Muslims who became involved in terrorism through participation with Al Qaeda under the leadership of Osama Bin Laden,

August 2011–President Barack Obama faced the crisis of the Debt Ceiling, which led to a lowering of the credit rating of the United States by Standard and Poor’s and a stock market crisis. Additionally, the Atlantic Coast Earthquake and Hurricane Irene became major crises, along with the final steps toward the removal of Moammar Gaddafi from power in Libya after a five month effort by the US, with backing of NATO allies, the United Nations, and the Arab League.

So there has to be a sign of relief that the ugly month of August has again passed into history!

Jon Huntsman Separates Himself From The Republican Pack, Therefore Making Him Legitimate As Alternative To Barack Obama!

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Jon Huntsman, former Utah Governor and Ambassador to China, is quietly separating himself from the Republican pack of presidential candidates, legitimizing himself as the most credible candidate the GOP could offer, if they have any common sense, which they almost certainly don’t have!

Huntsman has made some strong statements that make sense, including:

1. He believes in evolution, rather than the religious based theory of creationism or intelligent design.
2. He accepts scientists on global warming, that it is a real problem.
3. He backed John Boehner on the Debt Ceiling legislation, which no other GOP candidate did.
4. He supported the DREAM Act, to give a path to citizenship to young immigrant children who might otherwise be deported, and instead allow them to go into the military or get a college education, and obtain a path to citizenship.

On the other hand, he has also, possibly obligatory, said:

1. He opposes the Obama Health Care legislation.
2. He opposes the Economic Stimulus legislation passed by the Democratic majority in Congress in 2009.
3. He suggested that possibly Obama could be impeached for his intervention in Libya.
4. He joined all the other GOP candidates in the most recent debate in raising his hand opposing a deal, theoretically, with ten dollars in budget cuts for each dollar in tax increases.

So Jon Huntsman is playing the political game, taking stands he almost certainly would change if in the White House, but even with that, he shows some statesmanship, some potential, that were Barack Obama to lose to him in 2012, the country would be in the best hands it can be, considering the state of the Republican Party in the present time period.

But of course, the question is will the GOP go for a comparatively moderate, reasonable, rational, sane candidate such as Jon Huntsman, who also has real credentials in foreign policy?

The answer is: Don’t hold your breath!

Herman Cain, Allen West, Tim Scott: African American Republicans Who Come Across As Outside The Mainstream!

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A recent development that makes one wonder about what motivates people is the candidacy of Herman Cain for President, and the words and actions of Congressmen Allen West of Florida and Tim Scott of South Carolina.

These people are the face of African Americans in the Republican Party, and all three have made people’s heads turn and eyes roll, as all three have come across as way out of the mainstream of American politics!

Herman Cain, former talk show host and corporate President of Godfather Pizza, is running for President, and making ridiculous statements, including letting the average American decide if a mosque can be built in his or her community, and stating that he would not appoint a Muslim to his cabinet. He also has made statements against Mormons, as not being a Christian group, and while that could be argued, the answer is who cares, as we do not have a religious test for public office!

How would the American people react if we were to say that a church or synagogue could not be built? It is not up to the average American to limit the rights of any religious group to organize, and Cain shows tremendous prejudice against both Muslims and Mormons.

Now Cain has suggested that Barack Obama face impeachment because of the Health Care legislation, and because the administration is attempting to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. So we are to impeach a President because we disagree with his policy choices? Then every President would face impeachment!

Also, Cain claims he woke up after finishing fifth in the Ames, Iowa Straw Poll, believing that he will be the Republican Presidential nominee, which means he is mentally deranged, having delusions of grandeur! What an embarrassment to the party and to the African American community at large, and notice he has no ideas or suggestions to help create jobs for his own community or Americans at large!

Then, there is Allen West, who uses incendiary language regularly, uses his military background as a plus, even though he was drummed out of the military for inappropriate behavior in Iraq, and fails to act in a chivalrous manner against anyone who dares to criticize him on the issues! So he goes ahead and insults Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz to the extreme, using inappropriate language in an email, over reacting to her denunciation of his stand against Medicare, when he has hundreds of thousands of constituents in his district who are covered by Medicare. West refused to apologize for his outburst, and obviously has an anger problem, and yet some are crazy enough to suggest him for Vice President!

Tim Scott has also called for the impeachment of Obama because of the Debt Ceiling Crisis, even though both he and West contributed to it through their support of the Tea Party Movement, and both of them are among the most right wing members of the GOP presently, and both are a disgrace in the sense of not accepting how their stands hurt the African American community at large.

It is almost as if Herman Cain, Allen West, and Tim Scott are aliens from outer space, who somehow got stranded on earth, and need to be examined in a lab for their weirdness, and anger, and self hate of who they are!

Is Rick Santorum Becoming Soft And Fuzzy?

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Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, the only person in the Republican Presidential race who has served in the Senate, has had a reputation for hard nosed, aggressive rhetoric throughout his career and during his Presidential run.

Santorum, who ended up fourth in the Ames, Iowa Straw Poll, behind former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, said yesterday that he will not drop out of the race as Pawlenty has done.

At the same time, both yesterday and last week, Rick Santorum sounded as if he is becoming soft and fuzzy!

Imagine this social conservative, who has strongly condemned gay rights and gay marriage, being critical of Iran for its treatment of gays! What has happened that he worries about gay rights in Iran, but not in America?

Yesterday, he was strongly critical of former Texas Governor Rick Perry for his threatening language toward Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke. Santorum said it was unPresidential behavior, comparing it to Michigan Congressman John Conyers calling for the impeachment of former President George W. Bush years ago.

Santorum declared that someone running for President should not use loose language threatening people and accusing them of treason because we do not agree with their views on public policy, and also should not talk about impeachment of a President!

Austin is not Washington, DC, Santorum said, and he declared that Perry needs a learning curve to understand the differences. He seemed to be passing judgment on Texas politics as he criticized Perry.

This is all very shocking, as by showing concern for gay rights in Iran, criticizing an attack on the Federal Reserve, and ridiculing Texas politics, all sound like Santorum is losing his social conservatism and his Tea Party credentials, or his attempt to gain their backing!

Rick Santorum actually sounds reasonable for the first time in years! What is going on, Rick?

Right Wing Talk About Impeachment Or Resignation: A Dangerous And Preposterous Idea!

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The right wing will stop at nothing to get President Barack Obama out of office!

Talk of impeachment comes from a Texas Republican Congressman Michael Burgess of the Dallas area, the same district that used to be represented by Dick Armey, the head of Freedom Works and promoter of the Tea Party Movement. Burgess’s reasoning is that Obama is totally ineffective and should be removed for that reason, rather than any specific violation of the Constitution.

The concept of impeachment has already been abused, as with the proceeding against former President Bill Clinton in 1998-1999. It is preposterous to say that even if a President is ineffective, which is highly debatable, in the case of Obama, that it should be considered an impeachable offense. In any case, even were an impeachment proceeding to develop, there is no possibility of a two thirds vote in the US Senate to convict and remove the President, and all it would do, therefore, is cause more economic tumult and political disarray, which is precisely what this country does NOT need!

If one wants to place blame for the chaos and tumult going on right now, it must be shared not only by the President and his party, but also, and to a greater extent, the refusal of the Republicans in the House of Representatives, and their extremist Tea Party allies, to negotiate and compromise on any agreement that would raise taxes to help balance out the budget crisis!

But now, we also have right wing critics who are suggesting that the President resign because of lack of public support, and that he first replace Joe Biden as Vice President with someone more unifying. This assumes that Joe Biden would resign, and one wonders who would the right wing prefer to become Vice President temporarily before becoming President. Would the extremists accept Hillary Clinton? Highly doubtful, and in any case, why should the right wing tell us who our President is, when Obama was elected for a four year term and should finish that term, and leave it to the American people as to whether they prefer him or the Republican opponent as their next President!

It would be unprecedented for Obama to resign, even if one thinks of him as a failure, which he is clearly NOT!

Only Richard Nixon has resigned, just 37 years ago on August 9 because of the Watergate Crisis, and that was for criminal activity!

Only Woodrow Wilson secretly planned to resign in 1916 if he lost reelection, with World War I on, and America in danger of getting involved. His secret idea was to hand over the Presidency to his opponent, Charles Evans Hughes, ahead of time, if Hughes had won.

Many Presidents have been seen as failures in different ways, but NEVER has a President resigned because of that belief, and it would destroy the whole American system of government if every time there was discontent, the President should be forced out by resignation.

Think of the many cases that would exist:

1, James Madison, when Washington, DC was attacked by the British, and Congress and the President had to flee, during the War Of 1812.
2. Martin Van Buren, when the country suffered from the Panic of 1837.
3. John Tyler, upon succeeding the dead William Henry Harrison in 1841, being told he was illegitimate even though he had been Vice President.
4. James Buchanan, when we went through the Panic of 1857, and later when the South was seceding from the Union.
5. Abraham Lincoln, when he waged war against the South, and violated civil liberties in wartime for purposes of saving the Union.
6. Andrew Johnson, who was actually impeached but found not guilty, who many wanted to resign as well, because of his opposition to the goals of the Radical Republicans on Reconstruction policy.
7. Ulysses S. Grant, who presided over the worst political corruption up to that point of time, and under whom we suffered from the Panic of 1873.
8.Warren G. Harding, who had the most corrupt administration after Grant, but died just as we learned about the extent of the corruption.
9. Herbert Hoover, who was cautious and ineffective as the Great Depression became the worst economic crisis in American history.
10. Franklin D. Roosevelt, for his controversial domestic and foreign policy actions and strong executive leadership in the time of the Great Depression and World War II.
11. Harry Truman, who many thought should resign after the Republicans won both houses of Congress in 1947-48, and for his Korean War policies.
12. Jimmy Carter, for his ineffective policies on the economy and the Iran hostage crisis.
13. Ronald Reagan, for the Iran Contra scandal which erupted in his second term of office.
14. Bill Clinton, for various accusations of scandals, and for his affair with Monica Lewinsky, which led to impeachment, but not conviction by the Senate.
15. George W. Bush, for taking us into war In Iraq on false pretenses, and reckless spending, creating the debt problems of today.

The answer is NOT to have a President resign, but rather to overcome partisanship in a crisis as we have now, and unite around the President, help him, not attack him, and put COUNTRY FIRST!

The Presidency will be destroyed if we let the naysayers rule the roost, and tell the occupant of the Oval Office to resign, as that will not restore confidence!

We have survived good and bad Presidents, and the answer is to follow the US Constitution and stop this irresponsible attack by the right wing on the Constitution they claim to revere, but in practice violate and abuse on a regular basis!

14th Amendment Celebrates 143rd Anniversary: Time For President Obama To Utilize It To Save The American Economy From Disaster!

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Today in the year 1868, the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, arguably the most important amendment other than the first ten (The Bill Of Rights), was adopted and added to the Constitution.

It gave African Americans citizenship, and pledged that no state could deprive anyone of life, liberty, and property, or deny equal protection of the laws. It also provided for the concept that all federal debts were to be paid by the government without any question as to their legitimacy.

Who would think that 143 years later, it is precisely this Section 4 of the 14th Amendment which can, if President Obama invokes it, save the nation from economic disaster by providing for a raising of the debt ceiling, taking away that authority from a reckless, irresponsible Republican majority in the House of Representatives, who as the author writes, still cannot get a majority to take responsibility for past debts that MUST be repaid to keep the good faith and credit of the United States government to bond holders and domestic and foreign investors!

Obama MUST take action, and should not wait any longer!

This is a moment which will define his Presidency in history, and he must assert his executive authority, and to hell with the radical Tea Party anarchists!

Let them try to impeach him, and the nation will arise in anger and throw these damn whackos out of power as equivalent of terrorists against the American people, not concerning themselves with their welfare and security!

These Tea Party radicals are NOT keeping their oath of office, and should be righteously thrown out of office by their ears, and told we are not going to tolerate this lunatic extremism, which has no concern for average Americans, and only speaks for the rich and the powerful forces which financed their gaining power by propagandizing among gullible Americans who have no clue as to the long term damage this radical anarchistic group is perpetrating on us, their victims!

America’s reputation and economic stability hangs in the balance, and we should all say a prayer, even if not religious, that Barack Obama has the courage and the conviction to do the right thing and save us from what might rank as one of the most dangerous moments of crisis in all of American history since independence in 1776!

The Choice Is Clear: The McConnell Plan OR Barack Obama Takes Independent Action And Risks Impeachment!

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The Debt Ceiling Crisis is down to less than a week, and Standard and Poors and Moody’s are warning of dire consequences for the American economy, with the lowering of the rating of America as credit worthy, if something is not done quickly.

It is clear that John Boehner, the Speaker of the House, cannot control the Tea Party radicals in his midst, and is in real danger of losing his Speakership in the future, whether or not his party retains control of the House of Representatives.

These reckless anarchists should be soundly defeated in the next election in 2012 to restore sanity to Washington, DC, but in the interim, something must be done to overcome the crisis.

The choice is clear! Follow the earlier suggestion of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky to adopt a bill giving the President three opportunities to raise the debt level, separate from budget cuts–now, and twice next year–to go beyond Inauguration Day 2013, but with Congress able to vote on the extensions.

Most, if not all Republicans would vote no, while most Democrats would vote yes on each extension, but the President would veto each time, and as long as one third plus one of each house of Congress voted to sustain the President, the debt ceiling would be raised successfully, and end this crisis.

It would put the burden on the Democratic Party and President Obama, who theoretically would be blamed for the extensions, and it might hurt some Democrats running for re-election, but as long as 34 Democrats in the Senate and 145 in the House backed the President, it might allow those Democrats who felt endangered to vote with the Republicans against the extensions.

The thought, however, that voting for the extensions would automatically hurt the Democrats is likely to turn out incorrect, as the image of the Republicans as a reckless, extremist party that is ready to destroy Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and refuse to tax the rich, and support corporations unwilling to create jobs as they sit on $2 trillion of money, with a lot of it due to the federal government bailout in 2008-2009 and initiated by George W. Bush and his party–this is very likely to boomerang on the GOP and push them out of the majority in the House of Representatives, and help Barack Obama be re-elected President of the United States!

This McConnell plan, while far from ideal, would be better than Obama simply using the 14th Amendment, Section 4, to extend the debt, as it would cause more controversy and could lead to the impeachment process being used against him.

With a certainty, Obama would survive, and the GOP would be harmed, but if we could, somehow, avoid the turmoil of another impeachment mess, it would certainly be preferable!

So Mitch McConnell and his plan could be the savior of the moment and resolve this horrible crisis, created by the radical Tea Party anarchists,who need to be roundly defeated and removed from their position of holding America hostage!

Time For Action By Barack Obama: Enough Of “Mr. Nice Guy” Promoting Compromise With Those Who Want To Hold America Hostage!

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President Obama and Speaker John Boehner went on television and cable this evening, with only eight days to go before default, and the danger of America’s credit being downgraded even before August 2, if it seems as if no agreement can be reached.

Obama made it clear that compromise was essential, and that the Tea Party Movement could not be allowed to hold America hostage, and therefore called for an extension of the debt limit to 2013, along with substantial budget cuts, but with some revenue increases.

Speaker John Boehner, on the other hand, showed no willingness to compromise, and seemed literally held hostage by the Tea Party radicals despite having earlier been involved in negotiations with the President, which he ultimately walked out on, similar to what House Majority Whip Eric Cantor also did.

Obama said an agreement MUST be reached within two to three days, and it is clear that the President MUST take action as soon as possible, no matter what the Republicans in the House do.

So, as stated in earlier entries, the President MUST assert himself and save the country from economic collapse, and the only way may very well be what some scholars and former President Bill Clinton have now said can be done–invoke the 14th Amendment, Section 4–which requires payment of all government debts.

Such an action, as made clear earlier, will cause a firestorm of protest, and likely might lead to moves to impeach the President–a sad, tragic event, but one that many in the radicalized House of Representatives have been itching for!

So let them go ahead and do it, with the certainty that the Senate would not convict him, and it would only make the GOP look even worse, and undermine their chances to keep control of the House of Representatives, gain the majority in the Senate, and win the White House.

Barack Obama would be put through Hell symbolically, but then he really has been already for the past two and a half years. It is time for him to show guts and courage like Harry Truman and Franklin D. Roosevelt in attacking the opposition in their times, and it is certain that the American people at large would come to the support of the President if he took action, and were he to face impeachment.

There is no time for delay, as the country’s economic future is at stake.

Time For Action On Debt Ceiling By Barack Obama: Invoke 14th Amendment, Section 4 Immediately!

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The Debt Ceiling Crisis, which has been building for weeks, is reaching a dangerous stage, with only 12 days left until the US government defaults, but Moody’s and other credit rating agencies are threatening action to lower the rating on government bonds before that date!

It is clear that the Tea Party conservative Republicans in the House of Representatives have no concern about the default threat and the downgrading of government bonds by rating agencies!

The Republican Party is being criticized in polls for their intransigence, but seem unwilling to negotiate or compromise, even though the debt ceiling has been raised more than 100 times since 1917, and nearly ten times under George W. Bush!

They seem unable to understand that raising the debt ceiling is simply recognizing the need to pay OLD DEBT, just as much as all citizens must do the same to keep a credit rating, and have any ability to borrow money in the future!

The recklessness and irresponsibility being demonstrated is reaching a stage where Barack Obama MUST take action under his emergency powers, even if it endangers his Presidency and his reputation!

Obama needs to invoke the 14th Amendment, Section 4, and unilaterally raise the debt ceiling, no matter what conservatives and Republicans advocate, as they have lost all rights to respect and being treated as a fair partner in negotiations!

The danger, of course, is that right wing whackos in the House will use such action as an excuse to impeach Barack Obama!

That would be tragic, but not fatal, as there is no way that two thirds of the Senate would convict and remove Obama from office, any more than that would happen with the unjustified impeachment trial of Bill Clinton in 1999!

Such a move toward impeachment would only give further evidence of how extremist and irresponsible the party of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and Reagan has become, and the American people would repudiate it in the Presidential Election of 2012 and the Congressional elections that would decide control of both houses of Congress for 2013-2014!

So Obama, by next Monday, with just a little over a week to go, and before Moody’s and other credit agencies take action, MUST assert his executive authority and let what happens to him occur, knowing the American people will be behind him all the way, and reward him with a second term, no matter what the Republicans do to counteract him!

From An Economic Crisis To A Constitutional Crisis: The Insanity Of Tea Party Conservative Republicans In The House Of Representatives!

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With Tea Party and conservative Republicans in the House of Representatives holding firmly against any raising of the debt ceiling by raising revenue through tax reform and the ending of tax loopholes, it seems more likely that we may reach a situation where the good faith and credit of the United States could be lost by August 2, leading to a worldwide economic collapse that would put our nation into another Great Depression!

What could be done to prevent this scenario if no agreement is reached between the White House and Congressional Republicans?

As Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner had suggested in May, the 14th Amendment, Section 4, would be a solution, as it guarantees all government debts must be paid, so the debt ceiling would automatically go up without a congressional vote under such a situation.

But now, there are threats of impeachment of the President, first suggested by black Republican conservative Congressman Tim Scott of South Carolina, a member just as looney as Congressman Allen West of Florida in his irrationality!

Of course, there have been threats of impeachment before over ending support of the Defense of Marriage Act; illegal immigration policy; and the “Birther” controversy by other nutty Republicans, and Obama will not let such threats deter him from doing the responsible thing!

But it means we may be moving soon from an economic crisis to a constitutional crisis, and if that is the case, bring it on, as there is no way that Obama would ever be removed from office by a two thirds vote of the US Senate!

The economic survival of the nation is more important than the fruitless move to impeach another President, bringing back memories of the abuse of impeachment by the Republicans against President Bill Clinton in 1998-1999!