I am proud that Sen. Feingold represents my home state. In his diary on legislation to end the war in Iraq, I posted a comment asking him to support impeachment because this administration has subverted the Constitution and admits that it will defy legislation ending the war.
Our response may have shocked the Senator -- he took a few hours to respond our loud call for impeachment. I am reposting his response to a set of fresh eyes:
Impeachment (3+ / 0-)
As many of you have pointed out, articles of impeachment originate in the House, not the Senate. While I agree that the President has committed offenses right in the strike zone of impeachment (most notably with his illegal warrantless wiretapping program) and I share the outrage of many Americans at this President’s conduct, I am not sure multiple impeachment trials would be best for the country.
by Senator Russ Feingold on Fri Jul 13, 2007 at 05:18:04 PM CDT
Clearly, the Senator wanted to think this through. But, I just can't see the logic of his reply. After all, Sen. Feingold has shown extreme courage in taking unpopular stands (against the Patriot Act and AUMF, for example). We know he isn't against impeachment, per se because he went against his own party in voting against dismissing the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton.
Sen. Feingold -- I am hoping you might be able to shed more light on your position. If the President has committed offenses "right in the strike zone," why doesn't impeachment serve the best interests of the country?
Isn't our Constitution in great peril? We have:
- A President who directly broke the law requiring FISA court approval of warrants for wiretapping, and who will not allow investigation into who was wiretapped.
- A President who subverts the will of the people, as expressed by Our Congress, in the use of signing statements.
- A President who obstructs Congressional inquiry through unlawful directives to his assistants to resist Congressional subpoenas.
- A President who has stated that he will defy legislation ending the War in Iraq.
- A President who dismissed U.S. Attorneys for political reasons related to ongoing investigations of his political enemies and allies in order to obstruct justice.
- A Vice-President who refuses to comply with record preservation regulations, claiming he is, in effect, a Fourth Branch of government.
- A Vice-President who directed his chief-of-staff to disclose the name of a covert CIA agent working on weapons of mass destruction.
These are just the ones I can come up with off the top of my head. And that would only include the transgressions we are aware of!
Sen. Feingold -- perhaps you think that the American people haven't been paying attention to these issues. Maybe you think they won't stand behind Congress. Opinion polls have shown as great or greater support for initiating impeachment hearings as before the House moved to impeach President Nixon -- even among political independents (20% of whom remain undecided). And as John Dean has noted, the transgressions of this administration are far worse.
The cynic in me is afraid that the Democratic Party knows it will win the White House in 2008 and simply wants to wield the power of the Unitary Executive. While the partisan in me may chuckle a bit at that thought, the American in me is aghast. Forgive my geekiness, Senator, but Lord of the Rings has a lesson for us: We do not wield the ring of power, the ring of power wields us.
If we do not stand up to repair the damage caused to our Constitution by this administration, I am afraid it may never be repaired. Indeed, we see many of the same ideas (and indeed, same people) of the Nixon era's executive power grab creeping around today.
Please, Senator. We need people like you who are Americans first, and who take the duty of their oath to the Constitution seriously. We need your support.