Papers of Impeachment: A Citizens’ Action

I’m pissed off. And judging from the polls, most of you are too. We’re in a war without end that we don’t want to be in, our economy is in the toilet, and we don’t have healthcare. Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, the play was fabulous. Well not really, the Executive branch of our government has gone amok, the Constitution is in crisis and our democracy is hanging by a thread. Not only are we not too wild about our President, we like our Congress even less.

With few exceptions, I really wonder what kind of kool-aid these folks are consuming. The Attorney General blatantly lies under oath, the Veep doesn’t even think he’s a member of the Executive branch and the President has broken so many laws that treason is the only possible word that would describe his tenure. The need for impeachment is not in question, it is an immediately necessary act to defend our Constitution from assault by our government.

But while the crisis facing this country continues to grow, Nancy Pelosi and John Conyers have staked out their impeachment-free table and are framing this as an election issue. As the Rev. Lennox Yearwood eloquently points out:

To uncritical supporters of the Democratic Party, I say this is not a time for partisan politics. To use the American people’s frustration with Bush as political leverage in the 2008 elections, and to ignore the constitutional responsibility the legislative branch has to hold the executive branch accountable through the impeachment process, flies in the face of our democracy.

He goes on, “The challenge we face as activists and leaders is how can we possibly bring an end to this madness when the Democrats in power are not with us?”

Last week, Rev. Yearwood, along with Cindy Sheehan, Ray McGovern and 400 suporters delivered petitions with one million signatures in favor of impeachment to Congressman Conyers, who heads the House Judiciary Committee. I’m not sure what part of one million signatures Conyers, Pelosi and the rest of Congress don’t understand, so let’s try this one more time, I promise we’ll keep it real simple, no room for misunderstanding.

Get a blank piece of paper and in big capitol letters that fill the page, write the following one word:

IMPEACH

Fax that word to Nancy Pelosi (202) 225-4188 and John Conyers (202) 225-0072 and your Senators and Representatives. If enough papers of impeachment as it were pile up, we will literally put that word right back on the table where it belongs in such force that it cannot be ignored. And then maybe, before it is too late, we will be able to begin to reclaim our country.

Lucinda Marshall is a feminist artist, writer and activist. She is the Founder of the Feminist Peace Network. Her work has been published in numerous publications in the US and abroad. She also blogs at WIMN Online and writes a monthly column for the Louisville Eccentric Observer. Read other articles by Lucinda, or visit Lucinda's website.

7 comments on this article so far ...

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  1. Skip Mendler said on July 28th, 2007 at 6:23am #

    GREAT idea! One could also write said word on a postcard and send it to one’s Rep, Senators, etc. –

    One could also send it to one’s state legislators; apparently STATES can call for impeachment as well!

    And hey, while we’re at it, how about postcards to Bush, Cheney, Gonzales et al — with the single word “RESIGN!”

    Here’s a more fancy way to get that same message across, by the way:
    http://www.skipmendler.com/pinkslip.pdf
    Just print it out, fill it out, and send it in to the miscreant of your choice!

    There are also the White House and Congressional switchboards, with operators always on hand to handle your call for impeachment, resignation, removal from office, arrest, and/or imprisonment!

    Bottom line:
    If Congress refuses to KICK the bastards out, then it will be up to the rest of us to HOUND them out! They did it in Buenos Aires, and we can do it here!

  2. Joe ciarrocca said on July 28th, 2007 at 9:28am #

    If I FAX a word to Pelosi…that word will be Prosecute…war criminals.
    In just the last 50 years, the u.s. government, miliatary and corporations has brought huge destruction and death to this planet, and ignored international laws and human rights…Impeachment is no more than giving a serial rapist a $2 parking ticket.

  3. Karen Hickman said on July 30th, 2007 at 7:59am #

    I am 100% with you. I lost my brother in Vietnam, and now with everything eles that has happened in the world, and the US involved, I hear the truth about Pat Tillman….We are all destined to have this happen to us, if something is not done. I printed off the Dismissal Notice , I will be faxing….

  4. Marikken said on July 30th, 2007 at 1:42pm #

    When the Democratic Party sends me “surveys” in the mail, I write IMPEACH all over them and send them back in their pre-paid envelopes with a promise to contribute when they impeach and stop the war and no sooner.

  5. Mrs. Pelosi said on July 30th, 2007 at 6:45pm #

    You fuckers are not my constituents, get off my porch!

  6. Lynda Hernandez said on August 1st, 2007 at 7:50am #

    Excellent piece! I just sent a proposed impeachment resolution to Huntington Beach , CA and asked them to place the item on the agenda for the next City Council meeting. The resolution is the exact verbiage used in the impeachment resolution that passed unanimously in West Hollywood July 16, 2007 to become the 80th city in the United States. To download a resolution for your own city, go to http://www.bcimpeach.com. Municipalities are also required to forward these official resolutions to the congress member in their district to submit to the House of Representatives to be published in the U.S. Congressional Record and that he/she introduce Articles of Impeachment against the President and Vice President.. Do all of it! If the politicians won’t do, the people will demand it!

  7. ANTHONY said on May 13th, 2008 at 5:05am #

    IMPEACH, PROSECUTE , AND OSTRICIZE THEM TO A PACIFIC ATOLL IN CHAINS