Dennis Kucinich's Rousing Speech at the DNC

Dennis Kucinich may never have a realistic chance at becoming President. But his spirit and his ideas probably express the anger, the desires and the hopes of your average liberal blogger, I tell you what! So what if he's kind of elfin? Wasn't that Lord of the Rings thingy like really popular? And Frodo didn't have a hottie wife. . .

Get Active: Join Dennis Kucinich's Impeachment Drive

There isn't much time left, in fact if he's going by EDST, your name must be added by 1½ hours from the time I post this. So, if you happen by this post before 12:00am Wednesday night/Thursday morning, sign up! And if you find it later? Sign up anyway, it sure couldn't hurt!




Sign the petition here: Kucinich.us

House Passes Law, Won't Talk About It

One who did talk, Dennis Kucinich
Photo from Raw Story

Some of the more hardcore liberals in the blogosphere are worried. They think that George W. Bush and his administration are not about to give up the power they've grabbed. They believe there will be some sort of--possibly engineered--attack, and that martial law will be declared. With the country in such a state, the election could be suspended, and Bush could continue to be President indefinitely!

Those not willing to go that far simply believe that the election will be stolen (again!), and John McCain will inherit the power structure the Bushies built for him.

I'd be lying to say I haven't pondered scenarios like the above, and others. I'm not sure I'd seriously entertain them. But, when I read a story like the one below, I start to get a little nervous. . .

[Excerpt]

The Thought Crime Law

. . .Worthwhile or not, the story’s about a bill that recently passed the House of Representatives and looks on track to pass the Senate and be signed into law. Over 98 percent of Congressmen, including all five from Connecticut, voted in favor of it (the final count was 404 to 6), and when a bill passes with such a high majority it’s usually easy to find among that 98 percent a few Congressmen willing to go on the record to say “I voted for this incredibly important bill because blah blah blah.”

Not this time. . .

Read more at: Jenifer Abel

Conyers: We'll Talk About Impeachment, Do Nothing

Dennis Kucinich, photo from source, Raw Story

Most political junkies (like me) have their "heroes" in the Congress. Most of them you'd sooner see as greeters in a Wal-Mart, but there are the good ones you try to give the benefit of the doubt. For me, some of the good ones are Russ Feingold, Charlie Rangel, Henry Waxman, and John Conyers. Conyers in particular talks tough about all the things that liberal lefty moonbat bloggers like me care about most.

But he has a disturbing pattern of charging ahead like a [fill in the name of whatever football position runs with the ball], only to come to a screeching halt. He drops the ball, and moves on to the next big issue. It's enormously frustrating. Case in point, he will hear Dennis Kucinich's motion to impeach President Bush. He'll talk about it. But he isn't going to do anything about it, no matter what is discussed. Huh?

[Excerpt]

Conyers may hold hearings, but plans no action on impeachment

All Rep. Dennis Kucinich wants is a chance to present his case. The Ohio Democrat has made a crusade of his efforts to impeach George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, only to be ignored and ridiculed by many of his fellow lawmakers. . .

Read more at: Raw Story

Dennis Kucinich Still Pushing for Impeachment

Photo from source, Raw Story

As a liberal, and a strong believer in the rule of law, I'm still strongly in favor of impeachment of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. I believe that they've racked up countless legitimate reasons for it. But I'm realistic enough to know that it probably isn't going to happen. In fact, I'm realistic enough to believe that they're going to get away with everything, at least legally. I'm hoping for a little Karmic justice, but that's all I have to hope for.

But, Dennis Kucinich keeps pushing for it anyway, and bless him for trying. If we can impeach a President for lying about a little sexual indiscretion, it just doesn't seem fair that Bush & Co. should be able to flout the law (and the Constitution) with impunity. So, at least somebody is getting some stuff on the record. Keep pushing, Dennis!

[Excerpt]

Kucinich to bring single article of impeachment for misleading US into war

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) is sticking to his drive to impeach President Bush.
Few in the House of Representatives have any intention of doing anything with the last 35 articles of impeachment Kucinich set before them last month, so the former presidential candidate appears to be lightening the load. Kucinich sent a letter to colleagues Tuesday asking them to support a single article of impeachment, to be introduced Thursday, which accuses President Bush of leading the country to war based on lies. . .

Read more at: Raw Story

Dennis Kucinich Fights on for Impeachment

Photo from source, Raw Story

What would The Man of La Mancha have been like if Don Quixote was right? Something like Dennis Kucinich's fight to get articles of impeachment against George W. Bush acted upon. He's not tilting at windmills here, he's got The Decider dead to rights. Sadly, nobody wants to hear it, at least not in the Congress.

Maybe if his articles included The Commander Guy lying about having sex with somebody, it would get some interest.

[Excerpt]

Kucinich threatens 60 impeachment articles if Judiciary doesn’t act

Rep. Dennis Kucinich warned the House Judiciary Committee that it would be wise not to ignore the 35 articles of impeachment against President Bush last week. If the committtee does not act within a month, he plans to introduce even more articles. . .

Read more (with video) at: Raw Story

Kucinich's Impeachment Motion Falling on Deaf Ears

Photo from Raw Story

As predicted, Rep. Dennis Kucinich's 35-count motion to impeach George W. Bush has barely made a blip, and is likely to be quietly forgotten (unless Kucinich gets his dander up again). I do understand why, but I don't have to like it. It is very likely that shining the spotlight on Bush in an impeachment inquiry would re-galvanize some of the Republicans that have been shed over the last few years. It would possibly jeopardize the Democrats' strongest chance to take back the White House in years.

But it is extremely unpleasant to think that Bush and his administration may just get away with everything. It will be absolute torture--assuming Barack Obama wins--to hear the Rush Limbaughs and Sean Hannitys squawking about every teeny little "scandal" that pops up. It is virtually guaranteed that they will go after Obama just as fiercely as they did Clinton. And we remember how resoundingly stupid many of those "scandals" were, right up to the impeachment for lying about a hummer.

How can we ever take Congress seriously again? Republicans, when they were in charge, allowed the President to do whatever he wanted, and were so in lock-step with him, he never used his veto pen. Republicans shut the Democrats out of everything, rendering them impotent. Now that the Democrats have (slight) control, they are hamstrung by the most obstructionist Republican minority ever. They are also strung up by their own namby-pambiness, not even forcing Republicans to make good on their many filibuster threats. Make them do it! But they don't.

Here is a piece sent to me by Stupid Monkey Planet, expressing similar frustrations in a much more coherent way. I don't agree 100% with the writer, but it's close. Take a look.

[Excerpt]

Bush wrongdoing and Democratic complicity needs to be exposed

Last week, Congressman Dennis Kucinich stood for nearly five hours in the House chamber, reading aloud the case for impeaching President George W. Bush.

The irony is that Kucinich's fellow Democrats, in their own act of dereliction of duty, chose to bury these 35 articles of impeachment.

It would be one thing if these Democrats thought the charges against Bush weren't justified. Most of them believe that the president did indeed break the law, violated the Constitution and probably deserves to be impeached. . .

Read more at: Nevada Appeal

Bill O'Reilly Berates Dennis Kucinich on Impeachment

I have not yet watched this clip yet, but upon hearing of its existence, I thought I ought to post it. Exposing Bill O'Reilly for the bully he is is always worth a little effort. Wait, how can I know that O'Reilly is "berating" or "bullying" Dennis Kucinich? C'mon, it's his shtick.

Later, after I've viewed the clip in full, I will gladly come back here with an update if I am wrong. Let's see together, shall we?

UPDATE: No clarification necessary. O'Reilly was dismissive, insulting and condescending toward Rep. Kucinich. It was only on the issue of gas prices that he had anything nice to say.

Kucinich Impeachment Drive Works: On to Judiciary

Photo from source, Raw Story

Well, how 'bout that? The little engine that could, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, was able to get a majority of his compatriots (and even some Republicans) to vote "yea" on his 35 articles of impeachment! Sure, they'll probably scuttle it somehow, but it is going to the Judiciary committee where they apparently must discuss it. Cool!

[Excerpt]

Kucinich: Judiciary Committee must begin review of impeachment articles

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), two days after presenting 35 articles of impeachment against President George W. Bush, urged in a statement that a key House committee commence examination of the articles.

“It is now imperative that the Judiciary Committee begin a review of the 35 articles,” said Kucinich. “I will be providing supporting documentation to the committee so that it can proceed in an orderly manner. . .

Read more at: Raw Story

Keith Olbermann Talks Impeachment

As previously mentioned, Dennis Kucinich's attempts to impeach President George W. Bush will likely come to nought, I still think it deserves a little more attention. One of the few cable news shows to dedicate much time to it was Countdown with Keith Olbermann. If you want to know the hows and whys, here's one of the best places to get it.

Dennis Kucinich Still Pushing Impeachment

Photo from source, Raw Story

I admire Dennis Kucinich for sticking up for principle over politics. His efforts to impeach President George W. Bush continue onward, though almost everyone believes it will not come to much. While his case is strong, the desire in Congress to pursue it is nonexistent. Which is a shame, to say the least.

Politically, Democrats in Congress might be right. If they all jumped on board, they might jeopardize their chances in the Senate, House and White House in the fall. It's a roll of the dice that might not be worth it in the long run. But there are a whole lot of Democratic voters who would be mightily impressed by the effort, that's for sure.

It's probably important that this is at least going on the record. Because I fear that nearly the entire administration is going to mostly get away with everything they've done. Since we have to rely on karma to take over, at least there will be a Congressional record of many of their abuses.

[Excerpt]

Kucinich to push for referral of impeachment resolution to Judiciary Committee

Rep. Dennis Kucinich, who last night presented articles of impeachment against President George W. Bush to Congress, will tonight move that his impeachment resolution be referred to the House Judiciary Committee, per a press release from his office.

The thirty-five articles of impeachment that the Democratic lawmaker from Ohio painstakingly read last night for several hours to the House of Representatives will be read again tonight into the Congressional record by the Clerk of the House. . .

Read more at: Raw Story

Dennis Kucinich Introduces Articles of Impeachment

Yes, everyone's favorite unelectable Democratic candidate for President has done it. He's introduced 35 articles of impeachment against George W. Bush. Bless his heart. And I do agree with him. And sadly, I also know--that while it shouldn't be--it is a lost cause.

After the flimsy reasons used to impeach President Bill Clinton, an impeachment against Bush ought to be child's play. But the deck is stacked against him. At least he tried.



Found at: Democratic Underground

Dennis Kucinich and Congress' Secret Session

Congress has only gone into "secret session" six times ever. For some reason, the FISA/telecom retroactive immunity discussion was deemed important enough to warrant such a session. Dennis Kucinich would not agree to participate, and here explains why.

It's very interesting if you're into politics, maybe not so much if you're not. But whatever you do, stop the video before they get into the folk singing. . .that was even too much for me.

Dennis Kucinich to File Impeachment Papers

Photo from source, PressTV

If there's one thing that is certain about Dennis Kucinich, it's that he is not afraid to fight battles that are seen as unwinnable. His bid for President was always unlikely, but he had a forum from which to broadcast his ideas. And in this case, an effort to impeach President Bush, his chances aren't much better. But that won't stop him from trying, and it also won't stop me from waving my metaphorical pom-poms.

President Clinton was impeached for the flimsiest of reasons. There was a concerted effort to impeach him for something, and they did it. And by doing so, they seemingly insulated President Bush from getting impeached for anything. Which may have been the plan all along. But maybe I'm giving the GOP machine a little too much credit there.

President Bush and his administration have committed so many wrongs, and accountability has been almost non-existent. Even though Kucinich's efforts will probably land on deaf ears, at least he's getting it on the record. History will at least show that some effort was made. I applaud his audacity for doing this on the same day as President Bush's last State of the Union Address. That takes chutzpah. And it might explain how he landed himself such a hottie wife!

[Excerpt]

Kucinich 'will file Bush impeachment'

Congressman Dennis Kucinich says he will introduce articles of impeachment against President Bush for deceiving the American nation.

The Democrat said Wednesday that he would introduce the articles on January 28, the day US President George W. Bush is scheduled to deliver his State of the Union speech. . .

Read more at: PressTV

Dennis Kucinich to Drop Out of Presidential Race

Photo from Raw Story

And then there were three. There is no more "first tier" and "second tier," only two front-runners and an underdog. It's strange to think that the primary/caucus season is only nineteen days old. I really hope they fix this one-upmanship between the states, and come up with a sane way to schedule these things in 2012.

[Excerpt]

Dennis Kucinich Dropping Out Of Presidential Race

Rep. Dennis Kucinich is dropping out of the presidential race, his Lakewood congressional office confirmed Thursday.

The Democrat represents Ohio's 10th Congressional District. He is expected to officially announce his withdrawal from the race on Friday. . .

Read more at: News Net 5

Nevada's Holding a Caucus, and I Get to Play!

I've mentioned before that Nevada's fight for an early spot in the Presidential race, and making it a caucus was sort of like a little town putting in a roundabout because they think it's "classy." I still feel that way a little, but I'm glad too. Our votes for Presidential nominees have never really counted before, and this year they will.

But having a voice this season also brings strangeness. We're inundated with polling calls, and calls from the candidates endlessly. Several times a day. And then there's the news spotlight. The in-fighting (seemingly) between Obama and Clinton, with where the caucuses will be allowed. Dennis Kucinich's (possibly successful) fight to be included in tomorrow night's debate. It's very odd for all of this to be happening in our back yard. Not OJ Simpson odd, but odd.

I'll be caucusing for John Edwards on Saturday, and hope to blog about it upon my return. In the meantime, here's a little of that news I was talking about.

[Excerpt]

Kucinich OK'd for debate, appeal planned

NBC to Appeal Court Decision Granting Kucinich Entry to Tuesday's Democratic Debate in Nevada

NBC News said Monday it will appeal a judge's ruling rather than include Democratic presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich in a candidates' debate in Nevada. . .

Read more at: Raw Story

More Straw Poll Love for John Edwards

Photo from Blog.Kir.com

I've written about a few of the impromptu straw polls held on Air America Radio's The Thom Hartmann Program in the last couple of weeks. He held another one today at a different hour on a different day, but he got results that were much the same.

[Excerpt]

Who would you vote for if the election were held today?
Senator John Edwards 38
Congressman Dennis Kucinich 27
Senator Hilary Clinton 4
Senator Barack Obama 3
Gov. Bill Richardson 2
Senator Chris Dodd 2
Senator Joe Biden 1
Former VP Al Gore 1
Congressman Ron Paul 1
Former Pres. Jimmy Carter 1

From: ThomHartmann.com

I still wonder what this all means. I get how Dennis Kucinich polls so high--this is after all a liberal talk show, and Kucinich represents the most liberal person running. And, Kucinich (like Ron Paul) has a rabid pack of fans, even if there are apparently not enough of them to win the prize. But what's up with Edwards (my pick, by the way)? This primary campaign could be a lot more interesting than we thought it would be.

Another Straw Poll: Edwards and Kucinich

Photo from Democratic Underground

I what has sort of become a weekly feature, Air America's The Thom Hartmann Program ran another straw poll yesterday, dumping the phone lines, and accepting only calls giving a choice for President in 2008. Here are the results

Edwards - 36
Kucinich - 32
Clinton - 7
Obama - 7
Al Gore - 3
Biden - 1
Nader - 1

Though this is a decidedly small sampling, it is also remarkably consistant with Hartmann's earlier straw polls. All have shown Edwards strongly out in front, Kucinich a strong second, and everyone else trailing (or not even placing). The difference this week was a boost in Kucinich votes, higher numbers for both Clinton and Obama (though they are both neck-and-neck each time), and a few missing names.

I continue to find this intersting. I wonder if Edwards' strong showing says something about his hidden potential, or if his supporters just tend to listen to The Thom Hartmann Program.

Kucinich vs. Cheney: In Depth

Earlier, I wrote a post describing the wacky antics in Congress today, with Dennis Kucinich's motion to impeach Vice President Dick Cheney. What my post lacked was a nice, coherent description of the whole melee. Then, I found a really good one. So if you want to know in a little more detail what happened, try this:
[Excerpt]

OK, so did you get that?

So Dennis Kucinich offered a privileged resolution to impeach Dick Cheney. His motion entitled him to read his articles of impeachment into the record and on C-SPAN.

That gave the House leadership two days to figure out what to do, and when to schedule consideration of the motion. But they decided to act almost right away, by moving to table (kill) the resolution. In order to move to kill it, it had to be read by the clerk first. So the articles of impeachment got read into the record and on C-SPAN again. [snip]

Of interest: If he wanted to, Kucinich could do this over and over and over again, as often as he wants to. Anyone who wanted to could. A motion to impeach is always highly privileged.

Read the whole thing at: Daily Kos

Kucinich's Cheney Impeachment Motion Heats Up

Photo from source, Raw Story

Congress got kind of weird today. Dennis Kucinich was determined to start an impeachment motion against the Vice President in Congress. Democratic leaders were determined to kind of just make it go away. And then, during the vote to "table" (or kill) the motion, Republicans started changing their votes.

And so did some Democrats. And the votes kept changing until a majority voted not to table it. Ultimately, the thing got sent back to committee, where it had already been languishing.

It's difficult to sort out exactly what was happening. Republicans were trying to make Democrats look bad, and I'm not sure how well they succeeded. What seems clear is that Kucinich now has a little wind in his sails. I don't think he's going to let this go.

I say, what the hell. Just to provoke discussion about why Dick Cheney might be impeachable, and by association, George W. Bush as well. Stay tuned.

[Excerpt]

Kucinich not stopping with Cheney, plans Bush impeachment resolution too

Presidential hopeful Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), who brought an impeachment resolution against Vice President Dick Cheney to the House floor on Tuesday, says he is also planning a similar resolution to impeach President Bush. [snip]

In an unexpected move, House Republicans on Tuesday voted against a measure to kill an impeachment resolution introduced against Vice President Dick Cheney by Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH). [snip]

Following the failure of his motion, Rep. Hoyer immediately moved to have the resolution sent to the House Judiciary Committee, which the House eventually approved in a 218-194 vote along strict party lines. . .

Read more at: Raw Story