Mikael of ImpeachforPeace Empowering citizens to hold our elected (or otherwise in power) servants accountable

218 is the magic number.

435 House seats in all. 217.5 is half of 435. 218 is the magic number.

Which ever of the two major parties secures that 218th seat in the House gains or regains control of the House of Representatives. If it is the Democrats, impeachment proceedings absolutely MUST WILL be initiated – Nancy Pelosi’s politically calculated pledge be damned.
If it is the Republicans, another two years of a lickspittle Senatorial subservience to this despicable regime will ensue short of a revolution in this country, which may be where we are inevitably headed.

New York Times 2006 Election Guide

The New York Times presently projects:

196 seats as “Safe Dem.”
178 seats as “Safe Rep.”

18 seats as “Leaning Dem.”
27 seats as “Leaning Rep.

16 races listed as a “Toss up”

According to VotefromAbroad.org the eventually new tally will be a 227-206 Democratic majority with two “ties” that are far too close to call at this point. They see the Senate winding up as a razor thin 51-49 GOP majority.

I am going to initiate a process of analyzing which of these “swing” races are most vulnerable to being stolen. The races that are closest in states with hackable voting tabulators will go the way of Karl Rove’s dark will – that much is certain.

Call me cynical but I do not expect the House to turn. There should be no doubt that the GOP will retain control of the Senate. As hard as we are all committed to working to make my predictions fail, I don’t see enough democracy left in America to allow the “elections” to reflect the people’s will.

Here is a blogger who agrees with my distressing perspective but who offers a plan to overcome the criminal activity threatening our democracy: With Just Eleven Days to Go, Here’s How You Can Help Democrats Win the House and Senate -Paul Ostrow

Comedian, Talk Show Host and Political Pundit Bill Maher called for the impeachment of President George W. Bush during a guest appearance on MSNBC’s Scarborough Country last night.

The surprising thing wasn’t that Maher called for impeachment, or even that to his great credit, conservative Libertarian Joe Scarborough invites Maher back to debate Maher’s criticism of Bush time after time. What is most noteworthy is that the reason Maher did so wasn’t for pre-war lies, spying on Americans, institutionalizing the use of torture or destroying Habeas Corpus, but rather for sitting and doing nothing for seven minutes.

Maher opined that the most egregious offense this ‘resident has committed was that when after hearing Andrew Card whisper in his ear that “The country is under attack” the morning of September 11th, 2001, Bush sat and did nothing.

According to his own statements and those of his staff, the ‘resident claims to not have known the full nature of the attacks at that point. Maher’s point is well made that allegedly nobody knew what else was in store for America – whose shores had been breached and whose safety was in grave jeopardy.

Had the threat against the nation been “NUEcalure”, those seven minutes might have cost us an entire city or two rather than the three precisely demolished steel towers in one city, a cruise missile-sized hole in the wall of the Pentagon and a jetliner’s wreckage scattered over seven miles of Pennsylvania farmland.

His big moment came… and the Corporate-Issue Cowboy left his pistol in its holster, his pony tied to the post and his boots on the hearth.

Point made Mr. Maher.

(This previous blog entry I updated today)

Here is what I wrote on TruthDig in response to Kevin Tillman’s remarkable article there:

Comment #31730 by Mikael Rudolph on 10/21 at 11:04 pm

My good friend and staunch ally, self-proclaimed “Impeachment Grunt”, Marine Sgt. Daniel Fearn (ret.) warned me not to be too eager to thank returning vets. He told me that no matter how sincere the sentiment, the involuntary response from the soldier might be “What the f**k do you know about where I’ve been, what I’ve done, what I’ve seen?”

Just as surely as I will never know what it is like to be a woman, a black American or a starving Third World citizen, I will never know the world through your eyes, Kevin Tillman.

I most certainly can, however, clearly see a glimpse into the depths of your essence revealed through your answer to our nation’s call at a time of great need, the ultimate price you and your family paid, your rightfully loyal, respectful and obediant silence for so long and at long last, these courageous words at precisely the appropriate time.

When I speak out against this illegal and immoral war, this hopelessly spiritually bankrupt Administration or the silence of those that could with so little personal sacrifice work together to make this nightmare all come to an end, I do so from the vantage of the privileged position of a white American male of relative prosperity who has never served in the military.

The work I do toward correcting the problems you so eloquently clarified above I ultimately do simply to support the work and sacrifices I will never completely know of those who have given and continue to give so much more.

At risk of offense, which most certainly would not be my intent…

Thank you, Sir.

Thank you certainly for your military service, which costs me far too little to say to you.

I am certainly most sorry for the loss of your brother, in whose memory you are standing most tall and proud.

But now, more than ever, thank you for this remarkable early example of your continued service after having rejoined the ranks of the privileged, safe and comfortable.

Thank you.

Mikael Rudolph

Stayed Home 1958-2006

http://www.WorldCantWait.org
http://www.ImpeachforPeace.org

~~~

“Somehow, the same incompetent, narcissistic, virtueless, vacuous, malicious criminals are still in charge of this country. Somehow, this is tolerated. Somehow, nobody is accountable for this.”

–Kevin Tillman, brother of Pat Tillman

Original article on TruthDig:

After Pat’s Birthday

ESPN:

Pat Tillman’s brother Kevin speaks out against war

Sports Illustrated:

Pat Tillman’s brother criticizes war

– AP photo

The Military Commissions Act of 2006 is Bush’s “Enabling Act”:

On Tuesday, January 7th, 2003, Norm Coleman took an oath of office, becoming the junior Senator from the State of Minnesota. In taking that oath, Senator Coleman swore to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign, AND DOMESTIC” and to “bear true faith and allegiance to the same”:

In Article XIII of the Mandatory Judicial Notice regarding the Constitution of the United States it is stated: “The Constitution and laws of the United States are the supreme law of the land, and to these every citizen of every State owes obedience, whether in his individual or official capacity.”

On September 28th, 2006 at the end of the second session of the109th Congress, The Military Commissions Act of 2006 (S.6166) was passed with 65 Senators voting for its passage, including Senator Coleman:

As Minneota’s own Garrison Keillor wrote regarding Coleman and the 64 other Senators in “A Shameful Retreat from American Values”:

“To paraphrase Sir Walter Scott: Mark their names and mark them well. For them, no minstrel raptures swell. High though their titles, proud their name, boundless their wealth as wish can claim, these wretched figures shall go down to the vile dust from whence they sprung, unwept, unhonored and unsung.”

Keiller further stated:

“If, however, the Court does not (dispose of this piece of garbage), then our country has taken a step toward totalitarianism. If the government can round up someone and never be required to explain why, then it’s no longer the United States of America as you and I always understood it. Our enemies have succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. They have made us become like them.” 

Keillor, as eloquently disgusted as he is with this recent action on Capitol Hill, missed one key element. The wording of the new bill to be signed into law on Tuesday leaves just enough wiggle room for the possibility of a United States citizen to be designated an unlawful enemy combatant, or at least a legal argument to be mounted in favor of it, and to be tried by military tribunal rather than the U.S. courts and thus denied the Habeas Corpus protections which are the Constitutional right of every U.S. citizen.

The bill clearly states in `Sec. 948c. Persons subject to military commissions: that any “alien unlawful enemy combatant is subject to trial by military commission under this chapter”. However, the bill, in `Sec. 950v. Crimes triable by military commissions under subheading `(26) WRONGFULLY AIDING THE ENEMY: also makes clear that “Any person subject to this chapter who, in breach of an allegiance or duty to the United States, knowingly and intentionally aids an enemy of the United States, or one of the co-belligerents of the enemy, shall be punished as a military commission under this chapter may direct.”

Although some non-citizens have an allegiance to the U.S. such as Mexican soldiers in our military or those employed in other capacities by our government, the words “any person” open new ground in this document toward the possibility of the loss of due process for American citizens through being designated an “unlawful enemy combatant” by the President, the Secretary of Defense or anyone they delegate that authority to.

Senator Coleman’s vote in favor of this bill is an act in direct violation with his oath of office to the Constitution of the United States and therefore we believe his “true faith and allegiance” to the same has been irreparably compromised. With this vote and the damage it has wrot upon the Constitution of the United States, we believe Senator Coleman has forfeited his right and authority to continue as a U.S. Senator representing the great State of Minnesota.

It is generally assumed that a U.S. Senator may not be impeached despite there being no law or governmental rule forbidding it. However, we of ImpeachforPeace.org, a Minnesota-based organization for governmental accountability believe that Senator Coleman has violated his oath of office in voting for this measure and has committed a serious malfeasance according to Constitution Article VIII §6 and call the citizens of the State of Minnesota to join us in insisting upon the immediate recall of Senator Coleman from his post. This decision was passed in a unanimous vote of members present at tonight’s meeting as well as with the wholehearted encouragement of all members unable to attend:

Minnesota Senator Mark Dayton, 5th District Representative Martin Sabo (Minneapolis area) and 4th District Representative Betty McCollum (St. Paul area) all voted “Nay” along with James Oberstar in the 8th District to the north of the Twin Cities. The other five Minnesota House members join Coleman in shame and in proving themselves unworthy of continued public service.

We strongly encourage you to read the Keillor commentary above to find whether your Senator joined Coleman in betraying his oath of office and if so, please join us in initiating a recall drive of those traitors as well. To see how your House members voted, check GovTrack.us

Further commentary on this development:

Keith Olbermann succinctly chimed in on the end of Due Process in America and the destruction of our treasured Constitution that came with it in his “The Death of Habeas Corpus” aired on MSNBC’s Countdown” on October 10th.:

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) also blasted the recent detainee bill, saying it represents: “A Total Rollback Of Everything This Country Has Stood For”

Jodin submitted the following to this Impeachment blog and I am publishing it nearly verbatim: Do-It-Yourself Impeachment Due this Thursday!!! (Oct 12)

The day the nation demands impeachment is almost upon us. This coming
Thursday (Oct 12), sacks and sacks of mail will arrive in congress demanding
impeachment via the House of Representatives own rules. This legal document
is as binding as if a State or if the House itself passed the impeachment
resolution (H.R. 635).

There’s a little known and rarely used clause of the “Jefferson Manual” in
the rules for the House of Representatives which sets forth the various ways
in which a president can be impeached. Only the House Judiciary Committee
puts together the Articles of Impeachment, but before that happens, someone
has to initiate the process.

That’s where we come in. In addition to the State-by-State method, one of
the ways to get impeachment going is for individual citizens like you and me
to submit a memorial. ImpeachforPeace.org, part of the movement to impeach
the president, has created a new memorial based on one which was successful
in impeaching a federal official in the past. You can find it on their
website as a PDF.

STOP WAITING FOR YOUR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO ACT FOR YOU.

You can initiate the impeachment process yourself by downloading the
memorial, filling in the relevant information in the blanks (your name,
state, etc.), and sending it in: Impeachment Form Download

More information on the precedent for submitting an impeachment
memorial, and the House Rules on this procedure, can also be found at
the above address.

If you have any doubts that Bush has committed crimes warranting
impeachment, read this page: ImpeachforPeace Evidence Page

If you’re concerned that impeachment might not be the best strategy
at this point, read the bottom of this page: Arguments Against Bush Impeachment

“I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we’re really talking
about peace.”
Bush, June 18, 2002

“War is Peace.”
Big Brother in George Orwell’s 1984

What seemed for so long to be an end has proven to be just a beginning.

Just two weeks ago when World Can’t Wait was on the verge of posting a full page advertisement in USA Today and thus reaching into every nook and cranny of America, there were about 50 protests planned. The USA Today ad and other efforts led to over 240 protests, ranging from tiny, last minute gatherings of a dozen people or so to 1,500 marching in Chicago, 4,000 in New York City and 1,000 right here in Minneapolis in the middle of the afternoon on a weekday!

1,000 people took to the streets in traditionally bellicose Minneapolis?!? On a Thursday afternoon??!? Unheard of, yet true.

Here is the banner that led the way:

Eight months of planning and organization paid off with one of the largest protest marches this painfully polite, oversized little Minnesotan town has every witnessed.

Earlier this year I contacted World Can’t Wait and agreed to become the Minneapolis organizer for their organization. ImpeachforPeace.org is the extension of that commitment and the relationships that followed.

It was a remarkable privilege to have such an active hand in creating a forum for such powerful speakers as Keith Ellison and Clyde Bellcourt, Ford Bell and Michael Cavlan and others as well as help produce a concert of such amazing and diverse talent both local and from around the nation – ranging from the folk comfort of Nashville’s Donal Hinely to the explosive metal rock of local band Harsh Reality.

If you build it, they will come.

Come be a part of the growing wave that will wash our nation’s capitol clean of corruption.

Come be a part of something much bigger than all of us.

Thanks to BradBlog the following misinformation was exposed from a FAUXNews Bill O’Lyly episode:

Are there no depths to which the Pedophile Protection Party’s enablers won’t sink?

On October 5, people everywhere will walk out of school, take off work, and come to the downtowns & townsquares and set out from there, going through the streets and calling on many more to join us – making a powerful statement: “NO! THIS REGIME DOES NOT REPRESENT US! AND WE WILL DRIVE IT OUT!”

There are now over 150 protests happening simultaneously all over the nation. When you look back at American history, you will want to be able to say: “I was there. I made a stand. I spoke the truth to power”.

Please do what you can. Join us this Thursday in Minneapolis:

• Protest for Accountability
11:30am at the Minneapolis Federal Building, 300 S. 4th St

• Justice March
From the Federal Building to Hennepin Ave then onto Loring Park

• Musical Celebration for Peace & Justice
In Loring Park, 3pm to sunset, with favorite local and guest bands.

Or, find the activities closest to where you are:

World Can’t Wait – Drive Out the Bush Regime!

You are the one you have been waiting for.