A SOULFUL MOMENT

One soul recently threw his sole (make that two) at President George W. Bush.
The thrower had a pretty good arm, but Bush had a better head, and was able to duck before getting hit on his presidential pate.
Most of us will watch the replay of this bizarre event and hear the comics tell their funny lines.
This soulful event may become the legacy that Bush didn’t want to have thrust---that is, thrown---upon him.
At this very terminal moment of Bush’s administration, not much can surprise or shock.
Bush has already shocked the world for eight long years.
But more than just one reporter in Iraq is angry at President Bush.
After having bombs thrown upon their heads, Iraqis would like to throw more than just shoes.
It will be a long time before we hear the last shoe drop.


IT WAS THE OIL STUPID!

On June 10, 2008, Rep. Dennis Kucinich introduced H. Res 1258 which set forth articles of impeachment for President George W. Bush. His resolution stated that President Bush:(1) illegally spent public dollars on a secret propaganda program to manufacture a false cause for war against Iraq; (2) misused intelligence reports to deceive Congress and the public about a connection between Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda and the the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001; (3) mislead Congress and the public into believing that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and posed an imminent threat to the United States; (4) illegally misspent funds to begin a war in secret prior to congressional authorization; (5) invaded Iraq in violation of U.S. law, the United Nations Charter, and international criminal law and failed to obtain a declaration of war; (6) failed to protect U.S. troops in Iraq by not providing them with body and vehicle armor and promoted false stories about the deaths and injuries of members of the U.S. military; (7) used public funds to construct permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq; (8) invaded Iraq to obtain control of its oil resources; (9) created a secret task force to guide U.S. energy and military policy in usurpation of the role of Congress in legislating such policy; (10) misused classified intelligence information and conspired to identify a covert agent of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); (11) established policies granting U.S. government contractors in Iraq immunity from prosecution; (12) recklessly misspent public dollars on private contractors in Iraq; (13) detained U.S. citizens and foreign captives indefinitely and without charge; (14) authorized torture of captives in Afghanistan and Iraq; (15) kidnapped and transported individuals to countries known to practice torture; (16) authorized the arrest and detention of at least 2,500 children as enemy combatants in violation of the Geneva Convention; (17) mislead Congress and the public about threats from Iran; (18) created secret laws through the issuance of legal opinions by the Department of Justice and violated the Posse Comitatus Act; (19) authorized warrantless electronic surveillance of U.S. citizens; (20) directed telecommunication companies to create databases of the private telephone numbers and emails of U.S. citizens; (21) used signing statements to claim the right to violate laws enacted by Congress; (22) failed to comply with congressional subpoenas and instructed former executive branch employees not to comply with such subpoenas; (23) tampered with the conduct of free and fair elections and corrupted the administration of justice; (24) conspired to violate the voting rights of U.S. citizens; (25) pursued policies calculated to destroy the Medicare program; (26) failed to prepare for the predictable disasters caused by Hurricane Katrina; (27) mislead Congress and the public in an effort to undermine efforts to address global climate change; and (28) failed to take proper steps to protect the United States against the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, obstructed investigations into such attacks, and recklessly endangered the health of first responders near the site of such attacks.

By a vote of 251 to 166, the House of Representatives agreed to refer the resolution to the House Committee on the Judiciary for further consideration.

On July 15, 2008, Rep. Kucinich re-introduced this legislation now known as H. Res 1345. This resolution included the same language as H. Res 1258 and was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Certainly I share your concerns about the actions of the current Administration, and I will monitor this legislation and take your comments into consideration. Please contact me or my staff if I can be of further assistance. Also, please visit my website, www.house.gov/reyes to sign up for my email newsletter, learn about my recent activities, and obtain information on federal programs.

Sincerely,

Silvestre Reyes

Member of Congress