Impeachment Isn't on Their Agenda - Progressive Cowers

Recently an activist friend of mine was asked by David Swanson of After the Downing Street Memo if she would be willing to assist in a national day of awareness about impeachment of the Bush regime’s war criminals, including Bush himself.
My friend told David she’d contact the progressive organization To Be the Change and some members of the recent Bill Winters’ campaign to unseat Tom Tancredo in the House of Representatives.
A member of that campaign responded to her in an email this way:


S D - BeTheChangeUSA - wrote:

Impeachment isn't part of our agenda.


My friend was incredulous about this response and asked me what I thought. My response was the following:

Dahlia
My thoughts on this issue:

Ignoring the war crimes that have occurred starting with the preemptive and illegal war in Iraq is complicity with the criminals. The Nuremberg trials were initiated to bring justice to war criminals and more importantly the victims of the crimes. The United States was instrumental in bringing this about so the fascists responsible would face the world to answer for their crimes.
Now some fifty years later the leadership of this country refuses to even acknowledge war crimes other than the ones committed by low level troops under implicit protocols and orders of commanders insulated from any responsibility or blame.
Even worse is a group of progressives so cowed by fear mongering tyrants they’re more than willing to erase the history of the past four years to just “move on”. Apparently the 650,000 dead Iraqis just doesn’t measure up to the high standards of liberals and progressives claiming to want a new way of governing.
Three thousand dead Americans will make this nation’s people rise up with venomous hatred against the phantom of “terrorism” but dropping bombs on the homes of families only hoping to survive the already harsh life of Iraq barely causes Americans to flinch. The terror of bombs and artillery unleashed on children in Fallujah, Basra, Baghdad and Ramadi remains a forgotten issue. When it’s our bombs and artillery violating the Geneva accords and human decency it’s not terrorism it’s “democracy”.
The discussion of impeachment scares the hell out of those Americans wanting to believe the mid-term election was a victory for freedom and justice. But, to be a nation with any semblance of morality it’s imperative to seriously discuss the impeachment of war criminals. For a nation to be truly great it must take responsibility for the actions of leaders that have abused power. Just voting them out fails to bring justice to their victims.
The failure to seek true justice by liberals, progressives, Democrats and others claiming opposition to the Bush regime exposes them as nothing more than another face of what’s wrong with the political system of this nation. The statements by the Pelosi led “new” Congress is clear evidence we’ll simply have more of the same old corrupted leadership favoring the elite and ignoring and abusing the weak.
If I were to choose which side I’d rather see in power, I think I’d rather have the known evil of Bush’s government than the camouflaged elitists claiming to be something they’re not. Putting the Democrats back in power will only stall the needed changes as the American people will be fooled into hopes for change. In the end they’ll find their hopes dashed as their taxes continue to fund death and violence while schools, children, elderly, disabled, veterans and the most in need will be denied help they need and deserve.
Denial of the immoral and illegal actions by Bush and his government will only diminish the stature of the American people in the eyes of the rest of the world. Taking the issue of impeachment off the agenda of the new government has already started that process.

William Terry Leichner, RN
USMC Combat veteran – Vietnam (’67-’69)