Investigating the I-Word

"You are seeing impeachment as a constitutional crisis. Impeachment is the cure for a constitutional crisis. Don't mistake the medicine for the disease." -- John Nichols

I recently watched John Nichols (liberal) and Bruce Fein (conservative) present a case on Bill Moyer's Journal why America should impeach both President Bush and Vice-President Cheney to protect our form of governance. Note that this argument has very little to do with the Iraq war and everything to do with the balance of power.

I had shied away from considering impeachment as I thought it was a distraction and unnecessary with an election so close. However, Fein and Nichols present a very compelling argument and I am now reconsidering my position.

Anyone who looks at this as a liberal vs. conservative or Republican vs. Democrat issue is, in my mind, missing the point. The issue is the power that is being vested into the executive and that power is as likely, if not more, to be wielded next term by a Democrat as a Republican. The argument, as I understand it, is that unless Congress acts now to check this power-shift, the precedent will be set. We should not expect the next President to give them back saying "I don't need these powers to do my job."

You can watch the August 10, 2007 episode of Bill Moyer's Journal online on PBS' website and it is also available as a podcast on iTunes. Here's a quick excerpt via youTube.

Fein is part of a conservative group (including Reaganites and NRA board members) fighting the usurpation of power by the executive branch called the American Freedom Agenda. I recommend that readers of this blog take a few minutes to familiarize themselves with their 10-Point American Freedom Agenda.

My hat is off to Bill Moyer's who still shows us how journalism can still investigate and inform.