your article makes an interesting case along with Doug's call for civility i suppose. it extends it from civility in national debate to a fairly drastic observance of being pleasant. what you suggest, it seems, that no matter what the offense, if it requires being unpleasant, then it's probably just not worth it. if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. and i would remind you that all that's required for fascism to succeed is for good people to remain silent. if the waste and degradation of human life does not motivate you, i warn you that one day they will come for your color television set.

When the House of Congress called for impeachment of Clinton, polls showed the American people overwhelmingly opposed. They did it anyway. Now, the opposite is true. And now towns, cities and states will vote to impeach and Congress will ignore it. So what are we going to do about how Bush was put in office in the first place, by a Court above the Law, with a Congress and White House contemptuous of law and the people and a spineless, cowardly opposition party. And every day we face further dictatorial measures from Bush and his Congress, and the turnover of all our institutions to totalitarian minded neocons and religious zealots. This is no longer a partisan matter. It runs to the core of our system of government.We can't allow this to continue. We must call for impeachment. What else do we do?

Actually, the standard is different than you state.

If a Democrat gets caught cheating on his wife (something that absolutely does not affect my life or that of most American citizens in ANY way) - that is enough for impeachment. Screw civility, what the public wants, or what is good for the country.

If a Republican lies, cheats, steals, vacations while ignoring his duties, trashes our relationships with foreign countries, trashes our nation's credibility, sells out the nation's interests to big oil, pharmaceuticals, and banks, and blatently breaks laws without apology or remorse - that's not even close to impeachable.

He's a Republican - it doesn't count.

And amazingly, pundits will argue that Clinton and Bush are about the same in corruption. By my observation, that is off by about an order of magnitude!

Off by an order of magnitude? Are you lost in the tall grass? I'd say three orders of magnitude at a minimum! Sheesh! You point out an actual perceptual problem then try to soften it! You must be one of those Bush apologists.

I'm not one to harp much on media bias and all that junk, but it's interesting to note that the drive to discuss impeachment has largely been pushed by the likes of Meet the Press's Tim Russert. How? By simply asking the question of his guests... which is interesting because he seems to have only asked this question of Republicans (such as Arlen Specter). The constant drumbeat of big media types asking the impeachment questions has given those on the right the opportunity to portray it as Democrats talking about impeachment (you know, because the media oh-so-obviously has such a liberal bias).

While Conyers has advocated impeachment, the number of Republicans I've seen and heard discussing how it's ridiculous far, FAR outweigh the one or two Democrats I've even seen ASKED about such a move.

Just to clarify my last comment, I did not intend to imply that Tim Russert alone was behind so much of the talk of impeachment; he was just my example. Just watch Fox News Sunday or any of the 24-hour cable news channels for others who keep asking this question (with no real basis because other than conyers last year, there are few serious Democrats who have even broached the issue).

Does anyone really doubt the level to which this administration would stoop if an impeachment were to commence?

The more I hear the call for impeachment, the more I have visions of an America turned banana republic, with a President run amuck, declaring a national security emergency, and invoking obscure directives to halt the impeachment process, suspend further elections and make his primacy permanent.

I keep hearing reassurances that "the American people would never stand for it", but those reassurances sound hollow in the face of our apathy to date.

History is littered with the corpses of governmental bodies suspended by third rate dictators who sought to retain their power by any means necessary and unlike many I see nothing in our history which indicates that our nation is immune to such an outrageous possibility.

In fact, everything I have seen so far in the last two administrations points directly to such an action with a clarity that grows by the day.

Our Constitutional protections have been stripped so bare, and our access to legislative redress has been thwarted so cleanly that I see nothing standing in George W. Bush's way should he decide to finally cross the line and make fact out of caricature.

JeffH in Occupied TX

Nicholson Baker is safe from any legal entanglement concerning the inclusion of asassination in his book's plot, as no less than the Saintly Pat Robertson established precedent, by calling for the asssination of the democratically elected president of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez. And he didn't do this in a novel---he shouted it to the world at large. He yet to be charged for what is clearly a criminal action.

So much for our system of justice and religious wackos.

I have been around long enough to remember Eisenhower and every president since. This incompetent clown that we now have is the absolute worst of all time. I just cannot grasp how ANYONE would want to retain Bush as "president". Nixon was weird but politically smart. Bush is a warmonger who has no doubt that his "vision" was given to him by "God". I'm sorry folks, but this crap is hard to swallow. He has no hesitation in sending our sons and daughters to die for a useless war. His policies are shams that are only meant to line the pockets of his cronies and himself. It appears that he was doing much better when he was drinking and sniffing. Impeachment for being a war criminal cannot come soon enough.

Elizabeth Holtzman said that Congress wasn't the first to act during Watergate...it was the PEOPLE who demanded something be done. Time to get loud and don't let up. Write your representatives and let them know that this is what the impeachment process was put into the Constitution for. To remove a president who abused his power.

Makes you wonder if the impeachment of Bill Clinton wasn't done to make Congress skittish about doing it again. Maybe Hillary had it right all along...that vast right wing conspiracy theory.

Want to put this idea before the American public in a cheap, inexpensive way? Then take a dollar bill, the most circulated object in our nation, take an ink pen or Sharpie and write 'IMPEACH BUSH' on the back of the dollar. Americans tend to be a bit out of it. If it's not on television, no one thinks about it. But if they see it on their money, it might start to sink into their minds and their hearts. Sort of by passes the ineffectual media.

It's long past time for impeachment. Bush knew about 911 and did nothing to protect us. He went into hiding and some how came out of it a hero. He lied to congress and the American people and sent our children to war without the body armor they needed. He has given our surplus away to the richest 1% and Halliburten, he has turned the whole world against because he acts like a bully. We are the laughing stock of the world because he has no social graces. Hell he can't string 2 words together. He stayed on vacation while American's died after Katrina. It makes me so angry that he ate birthday cake and strumbed a guitar while children went without food, water and diapers. He spys on us and tried to put his own lawyer on the spreme court. There is no doubt in my mind that the last two elections were stolen. It's time he was tried on teason and high crimes again humanity.

AMEN Rebecca Bank
Please representatives take the hint and carry the ball of your office for a change!

I take issue with your statement that "Clearly, the conventional processes of elections and legislation are preferable to the drastic measure of impeachment. But the country is changing quickly in ways that will be difficult to revoke."

The Congress has the responsibility to execute its obligations under the Constitution which include oversite and ultimately impeachment and conviction in the event that the president engages in actions as defined in the Constitution.

To not impeach and ultimately convict in the face of overwhelming evidence warranting such action is to abrogate the responsibilties of Congress and cede power to the individual as president at the expense of co-equal branches of government and to the detriment of the rule-of-law.

There is no legislative and/or electoral remedy when the executive commits high crimes and misdemeanors. Were this the case then effectively one should expect that "ordinary" citizens would seek such remedies for crimes they committed. This is clearly abhorent to over attempted form of government.

Assassinate the bastard, I say.

We need a quick eject button for these criminals in Congress and the White House, how much more of our country can they trash and sell before they are removed!

We need a quick eject button for these criminals in Congress and the White House, how much more of our country can they trash and sell before they are removed! How about your approval rate goes below 50% and you are gone!

Its great to see some Americans who question their govt and media events. I am Canadian and truly love the U.S. as being part of this Western democracy and
look forward to the day when the Bush adminstration is totally cleared out of any and/or all postions that hold even the smallest responsibility or power!
We all must spread this news and information that is avalilable to all. Tell friends, co workers, family. Don't believe the govt story about Sept 11, or Iraq, or Afghanistan..PROTECT YOUR BASIC RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES! It only takes 5% of a society to effect a paradigm shift. We must all encourage others to research, read,interpolate, analyze and scrutinize and then for them to tell others.networking the truth as it were.Peace.