Monday, December 19, 2005

Impeach the President?

There is a lot of hysteria right now about the revelation that President Bush ordered the NSA to spy on Americans. Some are even saying that he could be impeached for this. I don't really understand why people are saying this. First of all, unlike the situation with Clinton, there is no evidence whatsoever that Bush is guilty of any sexual misconduct, which I think is necessary to impeach someone. Second, the people Bush was spying on were terrorists. Just as terrorists do not have any rights under the Geneva Conventions there is nothing in the Constitution that grants rights to terrorists. In fact, terrorists aren't even mentioned in the Constitution at all. That's why we have been able to lock them up without giving them trials or charging them. Finally, the program is classified and was illegally leaked. Unlike terrorists, President Bush does have rights under the Constitution and one thing the government can't do is use secret, illegally obtained evidence against someone. So therefore, any evidence that he did anything wrong couldn't be used anyway.


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9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Mr. Swift:
You are so right. We shouldn't waste time trying to impeach President Bush. Instead we should try to impeach Bill Clinton again. I have never read the constitution but there is probably nothing in it against impeaching an ex-president. I'm sure Clinton is guilty of something. Just look at that shifty bastard and tell me he's not guilty.
Yours,
The Reverend Faron Oldham
Beacon Bible School
23 Main Street (Second Floor)
Philadelphia, Mississippi

Jon Swift said...

Dear the Reverend Oldham:
I don't think anyone has read the entire Constitution (and certainly President Bush doesn't have time to look at it at all) but I think you're right that it never says you can't impeach an ex-President.

Anonymous said...

Dear Mr. Swift,
First I would like to start by saying yes, it is wrong for democrats to talk about impeachment of president Bush, at least at this point in time. Democrats do not hold majority in the Senate or the House. So even if impeachment was proposed, it would never reach the required vote to impeach him successfully. However, if it was ever to arise that congress wanted to impeach bush they would be more than justified in doing so. Bush has openly admitted to warrantless wiretapping which is a direct legal violation of the FISA court, and according to the FISA ruling if a warrant is not obtained within the allowed 72 hours of wiretapping then the wiretap is illegal and, yes, unconstitutional. The classified information can be used if subpoenaed by the ruling court. I could go into detail but that would take too long. Instead I will provide the address and you can check it out for yourself.
http://www.eff.org/Censorship/Terrorism_militias/fisa_faq.html I do respect your opinion Mr. Swift, but my question most certainly has to be why does President Bush feel he or any part of his administration are above the ideals and supreme laws this country was founded on?

Thank you,
Shane
Student
Ohio State University

Anonymous said...

I apologize, but is this a joke? Many American citizens are familiar with the entire constitution, they are called lawyers, and if you believe the President of the United States should be exempt from this status, I suggest that perhaps you vote for your dog the next election, for you seem to believe him to be of competent intelligence. Secondly, only husbands can be impeached for sexual misconduct, Presidents cannot. President Clinton was impeached for lying about sexual affairs after swearing an oath to God that he was telling the truth in a U.S. court of law. Are you capable of reading sir? Perhaps maybe you should vote to increasing funding for your local school system.

Anonymous said...

I encourage you and your readers to take a few minutes and see:

http://www.usalone.com/cgi-bin/transparency.cgi?paper=1&qnum=pet45

It's a list of the 25 most recent comments made by real Americans participating in an online poll/letter-writing campaign concerning the impeachment charges recently filed against Vice President Cheney, which are now being evaluated by the House Judiciary Committee. The participation page is at:

http://www.usalone.com/cheney_impeachment.php

Since this campaign began, three members of Congress have signed on as co-sponsors, in part due to hearing from their constituents.

Anonymous said...

"First of all, unlike the situation with Clinton, there is no evidence whatsoever that Bush is guilty of any sexual misconduct, which I think is necessary to impeach someone."

Is this liberal satire? Or are you just a fucking idiot?

Anonymous said...

I dont see any reason to do that to the president. Since I am here illegally I currently enjoy much that might be taken away with a new president. I want bush re elected another term so I and my 10 children can continue to stay here free.

Pround to be here
Tony Portillo
E. Roy st, Seattle WA

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