06 July 2005

Veterans group issues "Declaration of Impeachment"

On July 4, Veterans for Peace (VFP) issued a "Declaration of Impeachment".

Here is an excerpt from a VFP press release:
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Using the same language as the original "Declaration of Independence," Veterans For Peace cited many of the same reasons to remove George Bush that Thomas Jefferson cited to separate from King George of England. And in a modern version of the signing of the Declaration, VFP announced the posting of its online impeachment petition.

"The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny," Jefferson wrote, and then added the famous litany of abuses charged against the king that VFP said is unchanged today:

* "He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

* He has - deprive(ed) us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury - transport(ed) us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences.

* He has constrained our fellow Citizens - to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

* He is at this time transporting large Armies - to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

* A (President) whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people."

The veterans' Declaration of Impeachment came to the same conclusion as Jefferson's Declaration of Independence, when it declared " -- it is the Right of the People -- it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."

VFP President, Dave Cline, a decorated Vietnam combat veteran, said, "You bet it's our right and our duty! Today's tyrant named George may have little regard for the Constitution, but as members of the military we took an oath to uphold that document. George Bush has repeatedly violated not only the Constitution but federal law, by invading and occupying Iraq. In our system the remedy for such high crimes is clear: he must be impeached."

Emphasizing the gravity with which Veterans for Peace takes the impeachment of George Bush, Cline concluded by quoting the final sentence of the Declaration of Independence: "And for the support of this Declaration - we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."
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To read the Declaration of Impeachment, sign the VFP's impeachment petition, or to learn more, click here.

I have heard from several decorated veterans who have eagerly signed the petition.

What good is a so-called democracy if the people in power are not held accountable for their actions?

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