I have done roundups on impeachment twice before, this past Saturday and on Friday, July 27th, and will continue to do so as a series on a regular basis. In those diaries, I basically pull together a collection of recent impeachment diaries, while specially focusing on diaries covering the Enough protest campaign. This roundup is a different nature.
On Tuesday morning, I have a meeting with Nancy Pelosi's Deputy District Director. I diaried about requesting this meeting here and here. I am now preparing for that meeting, reviewing diaries and other articles that I have bookmarked since at least December of last year. Funny how a change in Congressional power dynamics can give one funny thoughts about the practicality of impeachment, but I digress. Anyway, I thought I'd share with you the diaries and news articles I used to help organize my thoughts. I've also added the letter I'll be leaving for Speaker Pelosi.
In the meeting request, I highlighted three things I wanted to discuss:
1. efforts to enforce congressional oversight prerogatives and seek administration accountability. I am especially interested in getting Speaker Pelosi's thoughts on the Administration's Unitary Executive theory and Vice-President Cheney's unprecedented power and secrecy.
2. the status of energy legislation, especially improved CAFE standards.
3. the status of ethics & lobbying reform (hopefully to express congratulations).
After the FISA fiasco, I'm going to switch it up a bit. As minor issues, I'll bring up CAFE standards and health care reform (linked in their importance to the U.S. auto industry), and give my congratulations for success on ethics reform. My primary focus will be oversight of the Executive branch, the need for bold leadership, and losing the faith of her constituency. I will be more forceful in my presentation than I had originally planned and will directly address impeachment. Originally, I had planned on a cordial and diplomatic presentation. Now I am shooting for a diplomatic, but blunt tone.
I had hoped to have the letter drafted in order to get some last minute feedback from the DailyKos community, but it looks like I'm still a few hours away from having it completed. I may update this diary later with that draft later, but in the meantime I welcome any thoughts this evening regarding information I should or could use or approaches I should take. I also welcome any comments on the diaries and news stories I included in this roundup.
By the way, for anyone curious about this past Sunday's edition of Enough SF, I'll be posting that later Tuesday. Wednesday or Thursday, I'll diary about my meeting with the Speaker's Deputy District Director.
[Update 2] Here's the letter I'm taking. I still have a couple of hours if you see any errors.
August 14, 2007
Dear Speaker Pelosi,
I am a grad student studying Chinese medicine in San Francisco. I have been your constituent for just over four years. I have appreciated and want to thank you for your leadership in the first 100 hours of the 110th congress and in passing legitimate ethics and lobbying reform.
Having said that, as I'm sure you are perfectly aware, our nation is in the midst a new long, national nightmare. When I initially set up a meeting with your Deputy District Director, I had a relaxed view of the meeting opportunity. While there were concerns I wanted to address, I also wanted to express my gratitude and pride in having you represent me in the House as Speaker. With the passage of the FISA update and the ensuing Republican celebration, my hopes for the meeting are no longer relaxed.
From the very beginning of the Bush/Cheney administration, congressional oversight of the executive and the Constitutional checks and balances have been under attack. Under the Republicans, Congress gave the President whatever he wanted unless Democrats were able to pull together enough strength to act as the adult in the room. Along with the rest of the country, I hoped that would change with the 2006 elections and Democrats back in the leadership of both chambers.
Unfortunately, in spite of some modest legislative successes, what the public sees are failures to reign in the administration on Iraq, failure to hold anyone in the administration accountable, and not just failure but capitulation on the FISA update.
I've been in favor of impeachment almost since Bush stepped into office. Iraq and Katrina pushed me further that direction. For me the last straw was the commutation of Scooter Libby's prison sentence. That pushed me from merely supporting impeachment to being an advocate and an activist for impeachment.
As an activist, I participate in the DailyKos online community. I have attended meetings for the World Can't Wait here in San Francisco and one with an Impeach Bush-Cheney Meetup group in the East Bay. I have joined a national protest campaign called Enough, and started a group here in San Francisco to support that campaign. In the very brief time since July 3rd, I've seen a lot of people frightened and in pain for our country. I've been reading DailyKos since the 2004 election. In the past year, I've watched as the fear and pain have grown. Along side those are growing frustration and alienation.
The fear is not about terrorism or the war on terror. Instead, we are afraid of a hyper-secretive administration determined to expand its power. We are afraid the leaders we elected to stand up and represent us and reign in the abuses of the administration are too timid. We’re shouting at the tops our lungs for bold and decisive leadership. We’re holding our collective breath for leaders who will confront Bush and Cheney and say NO! Instead, we see political calculation and miscalculation. We see Dick Cheney in an interview with Larry King, when asked if there are any plans to attack Iran, respond, "Now what reason would I have to do that Larry?" and then smirk.
In Chinese medicine, we talk about treating the root rather than the branch. Our goal is to treat the cause and not the symptoms. The Democratic attempts to focus on passing meaningful legislation are admirable. However, between Republican obstructionism and Bush's aversion to compromise, real gains are small bandages treating chronic symptoms. The public sees that the root is not being treated in favor of a fancy cast all the popular kids can sign. Whatever legislative progress you are able to make, your constituents lose faith because we see the glaring cancer being left untreated. It is time for truly forceful oversight. It is time to allow impeachment back on the table. If you choose not to act because you don't have the votes to win, you will find, because no one would stand up for the principles of our country which we hold so dear, you will lose the support that put Democrats back in leadership.
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