It is now imperative

by

Gerald Plessner

The Constitution, Article II, Section 1, paragraph 8

Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation: -- "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

February 4, 2007 - It is now imperative that the Congress of the United States remove from office president George W. Bush and vice president Richard Cheney for their failures to "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

There are both legal and political means to initiate such action, either by a bi-partisan call upon the two leaders by members of the Senate or the House of Representatives or both, to request their resignations, or by the threat of impeachment.

The cause for such a drastic measure must be the depressing truth that the people and their elected representatives no longer respect or trust the leadership of George W. Bush and Richard Cheney.

Should the president or vice president refuse to resign, they should be made to understand that they will be faced with impeachment.

The consideration of impeachment is an action not to be taken frivolously. The president and vice president must be proven, individually and together, to have violated their oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States.

Any bill of particulars must be focused specifically on actions which violate that oath. They should include:

* Violation of Article I, Section 9 which states, "The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it."

* Violation of the Fifth Amendment which states, "No person...shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself..."

* Violation of the Sixth Amendment which states, "the accused shall ...be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense."

* Violation of the Eighth Amendment which states, "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."

* The president's use of signing statements in which he states his intention to violate the laws of the land by refusing to recognize or enforce the acts of Congress which he has just signed into law.

* The actions of the vice president, with the president's approval, which put at risk the nation's security by his efforts to silence a critic which resulted in the betrayal of a covert agent of the United States and the destruction of an important intelligence gathering program.

* And finally, and most importantly, the violation of trust with the American people as evidenced by lies and distortions of fact intended to mislead the people, the press and the legislature as to the reasons and necessity of going to war against the nation of Iraq.

There are many specific acts which cause individual citizens to believe that the removal of the president and vice president are warranted. But such action will require specific examples which have universal understanding and revulsion.

While the president's refusal to acknowledge the wishes of the American people to not increase the number of American servicemen and servicewomen in Iraq is cause enough for his removal from office, it does not rise to an action in violation of his Constitutional responsibilities.

But the probability that the president and vice president have already decided to attack Iran, potentially causing even greater loss of American lives and resources and causing untold instability and violence in the Middle East and elsewhere, adds to the urgency for action to further restrict their powers.

There are frightening potential consequences should America fail to change its national leadership at this time.

The first thing that each American must do is write or email their Senators and Congressional Representative, demanding that the issue of impeachment be brought to the floor of both Houses of Congress.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Gerald Plessner is a Southern California businessman who writes regularly on issues of politics and culture. He would be pleased to hear from you and may be contacted at gerald@geraldplessner.com. To receive his commentaries go to maillist-subscribe@geraldplessner.com.