SIGN THE PETITION
OUR GOAL:
Collect as many signatures as possible from all Massachusetts representative districts in our online petition and present them to our State House Representatives.
[PDF]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
IN THE YEAR TWO THOUSAND SEVEN
HOUSE NO.
PETITION OF:
RESOLVE PROVIDING FOR THE IMPEACHMENT OF THE PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
WHEREAS, by way of the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 (Public Law 107-243) the Congress of the United States authorized the President:
“[T]o use the Armed Forces of the United States as he determines to be necessary and appropriate in order to (1) defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq; and (2) enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions regarding Iraq”;
WHEREAS, the Congress conditioned said authorization as follows:
“In connection with the exercise of the authority granted in subsection (a) to use force the President shall, prior to such exercise or as soon there after as may be feasible, but no later than 48 hours after exercising such authority, make available to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate his determination that
(1) reliance by the United States on further diplomatic or other peaceful means alone either
(A) will not adequately protect the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq or
(B) is not likely to lead to enforcement of all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq and
(2) acting pursuant to this resolution is consistent with the United States and other countries continuing to take the necessary actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations or persons who planned, authorized, committed or aided the terrorists attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001”;
WHEREAS, the President provided such a determination to the Speaker of the House of Representatives by way of a report dated January 20, 2003, in which report the Preside stated: “Iraq remains in violation of its obligations to end its programs to develop WMD and ballistic missiles with ranges exceeding 150 kilometers. Since 1998, Iraq has maintained its chemical weapons effort, energized its missile program, and invested more heavily in biological weapons; most analysts agree that Iraq is reconstituting its nuclear weapons program.”
WHEREAS, the President also stated in his January 20, 2003, report that “the following issues have arisen since 1998, including: mobile biological weapons laboratories; missiles and associated facilities which violate the U.N.-mandated 150 km range limit; unmanned aerial vehicle programs associated with WMD; and attempts to acquire uranium and means to enrich it.”
WHEREAS, the President also stated in the report that “[f]or more than a decade, the Iraqi regime has deceived and defied the will of the international community and numerous [United Nations Security Council] resolutions by, among other things, continuing to seek and develop WMD and prohibited long-range missiles.”
WHEREAS, the foregoing statements in the President’s report were false;
WHEREAS, at the time the President provided the determination he either knew the statements therein to be false or was reckless as to their truth or falsity;
WHEREAS, George W. Bush and Richard B. Cheney conspired in the preparation of those statements;
WHEREAS, contrary to the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002, invading Iraq was not consistent with the United States and other countries continuing to take the necessary actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations or persons who planned, authorized, committed or aided the terrorists attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001;
WHEREAS, by the foregoing conduct, George W. Bush, in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has willfully misled the Congress and the people of the United States;
WHEREAS, George W. Bush and Richard B. Cheney have undermined the integrity of their offices, has brought disrepute on the Presidency and Vice Presidency, have betrayed their trust as President and Vice President, and have acted in a manner subversive of the rule of law and justice, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States;
WHEREAS, George W. Bush and Richard B. Cheney, by such conduct, warrant impeachment and trial, and removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States;
WHEREAS, petitions from the country at large may be presented by the Speaker of the House according to Clause 3 of House Rule XII; and
WHEREAS, Jefferson’s Manual section LIII, 603, states that impeachment may be set in motion by charges transmitted from the legislature of a State: Be it
Resolved, that President George W. Bush and Vice President Richard B. Cheney, by their conduct, warrant impeachment and trial, and removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States; and be it further
Resolved, that the Great and General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts hereby requests our senators and representatives in the United States Congress to cause to be instituted in the Congress of the United States proper proceedings for the investigation of the activities of the President George W. Bush and Vice President Richard B. Cheney, to the end that they may be impeached and removed from such offices; and be it further
Resolved, that copies of this Resolution shall be transmitted to Senators Edward Kennedy and John Kerry; to Representatives Michael Capuano, William Delahunt, Barney Frank, Stephen Lynch, Edward Markey, James McGovern, Marty Meehan, Richard Neal, John Olver and John Tierney; and to all city and town halls and public libraries within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Power to the people!
September 24th, 2007 at 6:21 amArticle II, Section 4 of the UN Charter states, “all members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. . .” Even the threat of a war of aggression is illegal.
Vermont Senate which passed a resolution on April 20, 2007, requesting impeachment. It is UNPRECEDENTED for Congress to ignore an impeachment request coming from a legislative body.
The bottom line is that Kucinich is right when he says: “This House cannot avoid its Constitutionally authorized responsibility to restrain the abuse of Executive power.” The congressman deserves credit for recognizing that “impeachment may well be the only remedy” for the Constitutional crisis Bush has created, and for the crises he now schemes to create. And if his fellow anti-war Democrats in Congress are honest with themselves, they will recognize that it is time for the House to start talking about impeachment.
It clear that voting for Chris Dodd, whose father worked at the Hague Tribunal the Executive Branch’s right to unilaterally strip citizens of core constitutional rights. People For the American Way Foundation believes the government’s “enemy combatants” and detention policies waterboarding is a long-standing form of torture used by history’s most brutal governments, including those of Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, North Korea, Iraq, the Soviet Union and the Khmer Rouge of Cambodia.
The democrats were elected to enforce our constitution and use there new power to end the loss of our civil rights not spend time making points against the republicans, and finding excuses too continue funding an illegal war.
November 11th, 2007 at 7:29 pmI have written and callled my delegate, Congressman Delahunt, dozens of times and begged him to join impeachment efforts. In every way, with every fresh outrage and sorrow, at every new public push to contact Congress, I have called and written. Over time I have given him every argument, laid out every one of the obvious outcomes of failing to impeach, from loss of one-time staunch democratic voters to unnecessary deaths, to economic ruin, to making us all susceptible to homegrown tyranny, and many more, too many of which have already come true.
I hope he relents. I cannot vote for him, as I did not vote for him last time, because of his capitulation. In fact, the democratic party has insulted its most loyal longtime followers in its quest to curry favor with republicans, or through individual’s acquiescence to the known threat of blackmail or exposure from the White House, a la Joseph Wilson and Valerie Plame.
I appreciate their fears, but people died for the rights Mr. Delahunt is now too delicate to protect.
We would have no nation if the American revolutionaries had cried, “There is no time”, “We will probably lose” ‘We haven’t enough support”, “We should concentrate on what the King will allow us to do”, “We need more proof that our cause is just,”
“It’s a distraction” “It would be divisive!”
One thing: those who struggled for independence did so for the rule of law and to overthrow one-man rule.
They didn’t not sacrifice so much, risk everything, so that Mr. Delahunt today could timidly offer excuses about why it’s just not the right time to protect our rights, our liberty, our freedom.
Now is the time. What will Mr. Delahunt stand for? The rule of law? Or through his silence, unchecked tyranny, lawlessness, and lies?
January 27th, 2008 at 1:20 am