Publish to Newswire
Add an EventFrom the Open-Publishing Calendar
From the Open-Publishing Newswire
Indybay Feature
No More Mr. Nice Guy!
Brad Newsham, the cab driver who made international headlines by organizing impeach demonstations in the San Francisco Bay Area describes his frustrations with government leaders he expected more from. As always-- he has multiple plans of action.... read on:
NO MORE MISTER NICE GUY! (A RANT)
CINDY SHEEHAN vs NANCY PELOSI -- AND NOW, SHIRLEY GOLUB
"PINK SLIP CHENEY" EVENT -- MONDAY, FEB 18, SAN FRANCISCO
A LEGISLATOR READY TO DIE FOR IMPEACHMENT?
NEW IMPEACHMENT POLL (IMPORTANT!)
FIRST, JUST A LITTLE STARTER RANT:
I am so upset. There is SO MUCH going on right now, and ALL of it seems SO VERY important. Congress is again trying to grant the telecoms retroactive immunity for helping the government to spy on whoever they please. The Berkeley City Council has made national news by standing up against the war machine, an action that our friends at Code Pink and World Can't Wait have supported with their bodies -- I was over at the gathering in front of Berkeley City Hall on Monday night, and was touched by the stories that some of the protesters -- mostly women, but a couple of men, too -- were telling about the "plainclothes" Marines who showed up to physically rough up the anti-war crowd. Also, I'm riled up from last night, when I watched this past year's Academy Award-nominated documentary "No End In SIght"-- we have let a tiny group of people at the top of this country (coup leaders) just screw us royally, not to even MENTION what they've done to Iraq! But my biggest upset tonight is of the 'Think globally, Act locally' category -- I'm steamed over Barbara Lee's town hall meeting on Monday night. The first item below is a flat-out rant. You might want to skip it. There's a lot of news and other good stuff down below it, including a chance to help out with a paltry couple of dollars to bring a new Cheney impeachment poll to the nation.
NO MORE MISTER NICE GUY!
Monday night I went to the town hall meeting of my Congressional Representative, Barbara Lee. You may remember Representative Lee's courageous and historic vote way back in the dim mists of 2001, when she was the only member of either house of Congress to vote against authorizing Bush to do, basically, anything he damn well pleased. Lee has been at the forefront of so many issues -- from cracks in the sidewalks of Oakland to HIV/AIDS to Darfur to the foreclosure mess -- and she is considered one of the strongest and most progressive leaders in Congress. But it was physically painful for an impeachment activist like me to sit through her talk. She was introduced by a member of our county government, who repeatedly emphasized that Representative Lee is a "principled AND effective" leader. But when Representative Lee took the podium, and detailed all the legislative battles that she has been a part of lately, you'd have had to have had either a full or partial lobotomy in order to not notice her dancing around the word "impeach." In case after case she would describe legislation that she has written or cosponsored or supported (all of which I support), and she would recount the high-minded principles involved, but in almost every case the punch line turned out to be that Bush either vetoed the legislation or gutted it with one of his nifty little signing statements. So, you have to ask, was any of that actually EFFECTIVE?
And she sounded neither effective nor principled when she kept trumpeting the great, glorious news that we've only got 300 days of the Bush administration left! If we had a Democratic leadership that was not so spineless we could easily right now be 300 days into Bush's and Cheney's prison terms. And just how principled is it to ignore the specific tool -- IMPEACHMENT -- that was given to us by the founding fathers to deal with situations exactly like the predicament we're in now: a government that's been hijacked! The house is on fire, and our leaders are out front mowing the damn lawn. Ms. Lee claims to be a strong supporter of impeachment, but if she really were, wouldn't you think there'd be a mention of it SOMEWHERE on her website ? I've been following her website since long before last summer, when she expressed surprise (to a group of impeachment activists, including me, who visited her office) that her strong support of impeachment was not mentioned on her website. She assured us that THAT would certainly change -- and soon! It has not. Go there now, if you'd like. You'll find her strong and righteous stands on Darfur, Iraq, Iran, SCHIP, the mortgage crisis, housing, the oil spill cleanup-- important issues all, and I agree with Lee's positions on all of them -- but you won't find a mention of her position on the impeachment of -- AT LEAST -- Dick Cheney. Lee's seat is perhaps the safest seat in all of Congress. Her vote way back in 2001 gave her a moral standing that is unsurpassed. If she were to speak up forcefully on impeachment (not just sign a letter or a bill, but make her support known and felt), I think we'd see a fire lit under John Conyers and the whole House Judiciary committee, who have been sitting on Dennis Kucinich's "Impeach Cheney" bill since last April! But Lee seems reluctant to put herself on the line here, seems reluctant to spend any of her moral capital. The whole perplexing scenario makes me wonder exactly what threats or promises Nancy Pelosi might have made (Lee told us that Pelosi was her friend and that she sees Pelosi almost every day in Washington) to enforce obedience from Lee, John Conyers, and all the others who could but won't use their own moral capital here. Refuse to use it, you're probably gonna lose it.
I wish someone were running against Lee in the upcoming Democractic congressional primary in June. (I'm registered Green, and not eligible, if you're wondering why I do not fulfill my own wish.) It bothers me no end that as things currently stand the people of my district will not be able to go to the polls in November and vote for a candidate who says, "I hold it to be self-evident that Bush and Cheney have performed numerous illegal acts (doubt it? -- read John Conyers' books), from high crimes to war crimes, that have had serious repercussions for the health, wealth, and soul of our beloved country. These two men should be formally charged and tried for those crimes, crimes that have been well documented, crimes they seem proud of. And if found guilty they should be impeached and imprisoned. This issue is of overriding concern to me, and to the people of my district, and I will work toward that end with every ounce of my energy. No matter what Nancy Pelosi or anyone else says." Sadly, Barbara Lee will not say this. She says, "We don't have the votes." She says, "We're doing the best we can." Effective? Principled?
I had 10-15 seconds with her at the end of the evening. I had my best clothes on. I had my best behavior on. I said, "Thank you for all you're doing. But I will go to my grave not knowing why you won't speak up for impeachment."
Her smile was wiped away by a flash of anger. Here's what I read on her face: "You crackpot impeachment people -- no matter what we do, it's never enough for you! Why don't you leave us alone? We're doing the best we can."
I'm sure she's sick of hearing from me, and sick of getting my postcards. I'm sure her staff is sick of hearing from me, too, but they're standing by to hear from you:
Oakland: Phone: (510) 763-0370 Fax: (510) 763-6538
DC: (202) 225-2661 Fax: (202) 225-9817
Best address for postcards: 1301 Clay St., Suite 1000-N, Oakland, CA 94612
CINDY SHEEHAN vs NANCY PELOSI -- AND NOW, SHIRLEY GOLUB
Cindy Sheehan is running as an independent in Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco district this November -- but Pelosi may not be around to run against Sheehan!
Earlier this week, pro-impeachment Democrat Shirley Golub announced her own challenge to Pelosi in this June's Democratic Party congressional primary. Golub, a San Franciscan who worked on the Dennis Kucinich campaign, has posted a short introductory video, and every Thursday at noon between now and the primary, Golub will be sitting on a table (not "off the table") in front of Pelosi's office at 450 Golden Gate in San Francisco. I'm going to join her for a while tomorrow and every Thursday that I can. Golub will also be attending the Code Pink "Pink Slip Cheney" event happening Monday, February 18, President's Day, in San Francisco. (see below) My understanding of the strategy involved: IF Pelosi should somehow slip by Golub in the primary, Golub and the Democrats behind her are planning to throw all their support behind Sheehan. The smart money is betting that Pelosi has a good shot at the primary, but Golub's challenge may help expose Pelosi complicity in the Bush agenda and make her even more vulnerable than she already is.
"PINK SLIP CHENEY" EVENT -- MONDAY, FEB 18, SAN FRANCISCO
Code Pink is not taking a holiday on President's Day. And neither is Shirley Golub. On Monday, February 18, Code Pink is holding a Pink Slip Cheney event to support the "Impeach Cheney" bill that Dennis Kucinich filed almost a year ago, and which John Conyers and Nancy Pelosi have kept bottled up in committee ever since. Robert Wexler's petition to get the hearings started immediately currently has 227,333 signatures. In addition, a Wexler letter to John Conyers requesting the hearings has been signed by three members of the Judiciary Committee and by an additional fifteen members of the House (including Barbara Lee), and on Friday will be delivered to Brickwall Conyers.
But even a brickwall will eventually fall.
Event details, registration.
A LEGISLATOR READY TO DIE FOR IMPEACHMENT?
"I've had a good life. I can't think of any better way to end it." -- Betty Hall, fasting for impeachment.
THIS oughta get John Conyers attention!
(By the way, Conyers IS indeed jerking our chains! He has been leading the impeachment movement on for at least three years and counting, and now he's been toying with Leslie Angeline and approximately 35 other people who are fasting for impeachment hearings. He told Leslie he would meet with her on Tuesday, but he's postponed four times, and currently has Leslie very-lightly penciled in for Friday, but I wouldn't count on it.)
Today Betty Hall -- an 87-year old, 14-term member of the New Hampshire state legislature -- joined the Code Pink fast, and says she will not eat and is willing to die for impeachment.
This could get interesting. Today is Day Eight of the fast, and I imagine there are some pretty hungry fasters out there. A news-hungry media won 't ignore starving women forever.
NEW IMPEACHMENT POLL (IMPORTANT!)
David Swanson, the tireless founder and wunderkind of afterdowningstreet.org, has arranged for Zogby to conduct a national poll on the simple and fundamental question which the mainstream pollsters have been avoiding like the plague: "Do you support or oppose efforts of members of the House Judiciary Committee to begin impeachment hearings to investigate Vice President Dick Cheney?" If the results of this new poll come out similar to the results of past impeachment polls (at minimum of 100 million Americans favor impeachment hearings), we'll have fresh ammunition in this never-ending, all-important battle.
[....]
Thanks for listening, and everything else you do too!
Brad Newsham
[Beach Impeach]
CINDY SHEEHAN vs NANCY PELOSI -- AND NOW, SHIRLEY GOLUB
"PINK SLIP CHENEY" EVENT -- MONDAY, FEB 18, SAN FRANCISCO
A LEGISLATOR READY TO DIE FOR IMPEACHMENT?
NEW IMPEACHMENT POLL (IMPORTANT!)
FIRST, JUST A LITTLE STARTER RANT:
I am so upset. There is SO MUCH going on right now, and ALL of it seems SO VERY important. Congress is again trying to grant the telecoms retroactive immunity for helping the government to spy on whoever they please. The Berkeley City Council has made national news by standing up against the war machine, an action that our friends at Code Pink and World Can't Wait have supported with their bodies -- I was over at the gathering in front of Berkeley City Hall on Monday night, and was touched by the stories that some of the protesters -- mostly women, but a couple of men, too -- were telling about the "plainclothes" Marines who showed up to physically rough up the anti-war crowd. Also, I'm riled up from last night, when I watched this past year's Academy Award-nominated documentary "No End In SIght"-- we have let a tiny group of people at the top of this country (coup leaders) just screw us royally, not to even MENTION what they've done to Iraq! But my biggest upset tonight is of the 'Think globally, Act locally' category -- I'm steamed over Barbara Lee's town hall meeting on Monday night. The first item below is a flat-out rant. You might want to skip it. There's a lot of news and other good stuff down below it, including a chance to help out with a paltry couple of dollars to bring a new Cheney impeachment poll to the nation.
NO MORE MISTER NICE GUY!
Monday night I went to the town hall meeting of my Congressional Representative, Barbara Lee. You may remember Representative Lee's courageous and historic vote way back in the dim mists of 2001, when she was the only member of either house of Congress to vote against authorizing Bush to do, basically, anything he damn well pleased. Lee has been at the forefront of so many issues -- from cracks in the sidewalks of Oakland to HIV/AIDS to Darfur to the foreclosure mess -- and she is considered one of the strongest and most progressive leaders in Congress. But it was physically painful for an impeachment activist like me to sit through her talk. She was introduced by a member of our county government, who repeatedly emphasized that Representative Lee is a "principled AND effective" leader. But when Representative Lee took the podium, and detailed all the legislative battles that she has been a part of lately, you'd have had to have had either a full or partial lobotomy in order to not notice her dancing around the word "impeach." In case after case she would describe legislation that she has written or cosponsored or supported (all of which I support), and she would recount the high-minded principles involved, but in almost every case the punch line turned out to be that Bush either vetoed the legislation or gutted it with one of his nifty little signing statements. So, you have to ask, was any of that actually EFFECTIVE?
And she sounded neither effective nor principled when she kept trumpeting the great, glorious news that we've only got 300 days of the Bush administration left! If we had a Democratic leadership that was not so spineless we could easily right now be 300 days into Bush's and Cheney's prison terms. And just how principled is it to ignore the specific tool -- IMPEACHMENT -- that was given to us by the founding fathers to deal with situations exactly like the predicament we're in now: a government that's been hijacked! The house is on fire, and our leaders are out front mowing the damn lawn. Ms. Lee claims to be a strong supporter of impeachment, but if she really were, wouldn't you think there'd be a mention of it SOMEWHERE on her website ? I've been following her website since long before last summer, when she expressed surprise (to a group of impeachment activists, including me, who visited her office) that her strong support of impeachment was not mentioned on her website. She assured us that THAT would certainly change -- and soon! It has not. Go there now, if you'd like. You'll find her strong and righteous stands on Darfur, Iraq, Iran, SCHIP, the mortgage crisis, housing, the oil spill cleanup-- important issues all, and I agree with Lee's positions on all of them -- but you won't find a mention of her position on the impeachment of -- AT LEAST -- Dick Cheney. Lee's seat is perhaps the safest seat in all of Congress. Her vote way back in 2001 gave her a moral standing that is unsurpassed. If she were to speak up forcefully on impeachment (not just sign a letter or a bill, but make her support known and felt), I think we'd see a fire lit under John Conyers and the whole House Judiciary committee, who have been sitting on Dennis Kucinich's "Impeach Cheney" bill since last April! But Lee seems reluctant to put herself on the line here, seems reluctant to spend any of her moral capital. The whole perplexing scenario makes me wonder exactly what threats or promises Nancy Pelosi might have made (Lee told us that Pelosi was her friend and that she sees Pelosi almost every day in Washington) to enforce obedience from Lee, John Conyers, and all the others who could but won't use their own moral capital here. Refuse to use it, you're probably gonna lose it.
I wish someone were running against Lee in the upcoming Democractic congressional primary in June. (I'm registered Green, and not eligible, if you're wondering why I do not fulfill my own wish.) It bothers me no end that as things currently stand the people of my district will not be able to go to the polls in November and vote for a candidate who says, "I hold it to be self-evident that Bush and Cheney have performed numerous illegal acts (doubt it? -- read John Conyers' books), from high crimes to war crimes, that have had serious repercussions for the health, wealth, and soul of our beloved country. These two men should be formally charged and tried for those crimes, crimes that have been well documented, crimes they seem proud of. And if found guilty they should be impeached and imprisoned. This issue is of overriding concern to me, and to the people of my district, and I will work toward that end with every ounce of my energy. No matter what Nancy Pelosi or anyone else says." Sadly, Barbara Lee will not say this. She says, "We don't have the votes." She says, "We're doing the best we can." Effective? Principled?
I had 10-15 seconds with her at the end of the evening. I had my best clothes on. I had my best behavior on. I said, "Thank you for all you're doing. But I will go to my grave not knowing why you won't speak up for impeachment."
Her smile was wiped away by a flash of anger. Here's what I read on her face: "You crackpot impeachment people -- no matter what we do, it's never enough for you! Why don't you leave us alone? We're doing the best we can."
I'm sure she's sick of hearing from me, and sick of getting my postcards. I'm sure her staff is sick of hearing from me, too, but they're standing by to hear from you:
Oakland: Phone: (510) 763-0370 Fax: (510) 763-6538
DC: (202) 225-2661 Fax: (202) 225-9817
Best address for postcards: 1301 Clay St., Suite 1000-N, Oakland, CA 94612
CINDY SHEEHAN vs NANCY PELOSI -- AND NOW, SHIRLEY GOLUB
Cindy Sheehan is running as an independent in Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco district this November -- but Pelosi may not be around to run against Sheehan!
Earlier this week, pro-impeachment Democrat Shirley Golub announced her own challenge to Pelosi in this June's Democratic Party congressional primary. Golub, a San Franciscan who worked on the Dennis Kucinich campaign, has posted a short introductory video, and every Thursday at noon between now and the primary, Golub will be sitting on a table (not "off the table") in front of Pelosi's office at 450 Golden Gate in San Francisco. I'm going to join her for a while tomorrow and every Thursday that I can. Golub will also be attending the Code Pink "Pink Slip Cheney" event happening Monday, February 18, President's Day, in San Francisco. (see below) My understanding of the strategy involved: IF Pelosi should somehow slip by Golub in the primary, Golub and the Democrats behind her are planning to throw all their support behind Sheehan. The smart money is betting that Pelosi has a good shot at the primary, but Golub's challenge may help expose Pelosi complicity in the Bush agenda and make her even more vulnerable than she already is.
"PINK SLIP CHENEY" EVENT -- MONDAY, FEB 18, SAN FRANCISCO
Code Pink is not taking a holiday on President's Day. And neither is Shirley Golub. On Monday, February 18, Code Pink is holding a Pink Slip Cheney event to support the "Impeach Cheney" bill that Dennis Kucinich filed almost a year ago, and which John Conyers and Nancy Pelosi have kept bottled up in committee ever since. Robert Wexler's petition to get the hearings started immediately currently has 227,333 signatures. In addition, a Wexler letter to John Conyers requesting the hearings has been signed by three members of the Judiciary Committee and by an additional fifteen members of the House (including Barbara Lee), and on Friday will be delivered to Brickwall Conyers.
But even a brickwall will eventually fall.
Event details, registration.
A LEGISLATOR READY TO DIE FOR IMPEACHMENT?
"I've had a good life. I can't think of any better way to end it." -- Betty Hall, fasting for impeachment.
THIS oughta get John Conyers attention!
(By the way, Conyers IS indeed jerking our chains! He has been leading the impeachment movement on for at least three years and counting, and now he's been toying with Leslie Angeline and approximately 35 other people who are fasting for impeachment hearings. He told Leslie he would meet with her on Tuesday, but he's postponed four times, and currently has Leslie very-lightly penciled in for Friday, but I wouldn't count on it.)
Today Betty Hall -- an 87-year old, 14-term member of the New Hampshire state legislature -- joined the Code Pink fast, and says she will not eat and is willing to die for impeachment.
This could get interesting. Today is Day Eight of the fast, and I imagine there are some pretty hungry fasters out there. A news-hungry media won 't ignore starving women forever.
NEW IMPEACHMENT POLL (IMPORTANT!)
David Swanson, the tireless founder and wunderkind of afterdowningstreet.org, has arranged for Zogby to conduct a national poll on the simple and fundamental question which the mainstream pollsters have been avoiding like the plague: "Do you support or oppose efforts of members of the House Judiciary Committee to begin impeachment hearings to investigate Vice President Dick Cheney?" If the results of this new poll come out similar to the results of past impeachment polls (at minimum of 100 million Americans favor impeachment hearings), we'll have fresh ammunition in this never-ending, all-important battle.
[....]
Thanks for listening, and everything else you do too!
Brad Newsham
[Beach Impeach]
For more information:
http://www.beachimpeach.org/
Add Your Comments
We are 100% volunteer and depend on your participation to sustain our efforts!
Donate
$140.00 donated
in the past month
Get Involved
If you'd like to help with maintaining or developing the website, contact us.
Publish
Publish your stories and upcoming events on Indybay.
Topics
More
Search Indybay's Archives
Advanced Search
►
▼
IMC Network