Good Day: Kucinich Wins DFA Poll and Takes Action On Impeachment

On the same day that Dennis Kucinich took a stand for the Constitution and pushed for impeachment, the results of the DFA Presidential Pulse Poll confirmed that Progressives are willing to do the same.

With over 130,000 votes cast, the DFA poll is the largest presidential poll of progressive activists this year. Kucinich finished first, by over 10,000 votes! DFA (Democracy For America) was inspired by the presidential campaign of Howard Dean and is:

a political action committee dedicated to supporting fiscally responsible, socially progressive candidates at all levels of government—from school board to the presidency. DFA fights against the influence of the far right-wing and their radical, divisive policies and the selfish special interests that for too long have dominated our politics.

DFA has a long-term goal to rebuild the Democratic Party from the bottom up—it will take time, but we must start building a base now for the future.

This, just a week after a surge in campaign momentum-incuding continued progress in national polls and a huge jump in New Hampshire:

In New Hampshire, site of the nation’s first Presidential primary, Kucinich is tied for fourth place with New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson with 7%, only seven points behind Edwards, according to last week’s Rasmussen Report. Also, the Survey Center at the University of New Hampshire just released polling data showing Kucinich and Sen. Hillary Clinton gaining momentum, while support for the other Democratic candidates appears to have peaked and may be in decline in New Hampshire

Last week, in the largest Democratic straw poll in California, Kucinich finished a strong second to Edwards. Official results from the San Mateo County Democratic Party showed that Edwards received 29% of the total votes cast, Kucinich received just under 24%, and Obama and Clinton came in third and fourth, with 22.5% and 16.8% respectively. The other Democratic candidates were all in low single digits.

In a Zogby America poll earlier this month, Kucinich was fourth, six points behind Edwards, and ahead of Richardson and Sen. Joe Biden. The Cook Political Report/RT Strategies poll last month also had Kucinich tied with Richardson, and ahead of Biden and Sen. Chris Dodd.

In the House Kucinich used privileged resolution in an attempt to finally force a dialogue on impeachment of V.P. Dick Cheney; which the Democratic Congressional leadership has continually claimed is "off the table", even though a majority of Americans support it and over 80 cities/towns have passed similar resolutions.

After the Democratic majority attempted to move the resolution to table, effectively killing the bill, interestingly, the Republicans switched their votes to counter and actually force a debate on the issue. The Dems later held a vote to move the bill to the Judiciary Committee, and thus avoiding debate, where John Conyers will now have to decide whether or not to pursue an investigation. You can read a more detailed play by play of the development here.

We will have to wait and see what happens from here. But, Kucinich has once again proved he is the one pushing this party towards the people, as well as towards progressive reform. Congratulations to Dennis Kucinich, as well as all those who have supported him. We still have work to do, but we are moving ahead. And we are doing so with Kucinich. If you haven't supported yet, please do:

Dennis 4 President! Let's reclaim our country!

Kucinich Conference Call: The People and Impeachment

Dennis Kucinich will introduce privileged resolution to force a vote on V.P. Cheney's impeachment resolution this week, probably Tuesday. It is critical that we voice our support and contact our Representatives ASAP to let them know how we feel.

However, he is reaching out to us, the American people, to do our part and claim responsibility to reclaim our constitutional democracy. Dennis understands that real change and meaningful reform can't happen without the active support of the people, and so he will be holding a live, national conference call Monday evening, November 5th, to explain how everything will work and what we can do to help. From the Kucinich campaign website:

Dennis will host a live, nationwide conference call on Monday, November 5th, beginning at about 7:30 p.m. (Eastern Time), to announce what will be happening in the House of Representatives this week regarding the Cheney impeachment resolution – and to ask for your help.

The call-in number is (641) 715-3300.
When the operator asks for an access code, key in 324341#.
The call is open to all interested citizens.

The time to act is now. We have to contact our Representatives to gain support. We have to contact the Democratic leadership and explain that no part of our Constituion, including impeachment, is "off the table".

Off the table!? It is important to note why Kucinich is moving this forward: there is wide popular support for it! Over 80 cities/towns have now passed impeachment resolutions, with 50 more pending, and major polls, such as Zogby, have indicated a majority of Americans support impeachment proceedings. However, the Democratic leadership, members of Congress, and the MSM have failed to listen to the American people. As Kucinich noted at the San Mateo Straw Poll:

"If Congress did the right thing, they would be talking ... about impeachment...

"I introduced House Resolution 333 because I heard from the American people and they said they wanted some response to make Dick Cheney accountable for the statements that he made that took us into a war based on lies. And the statements he made that would take us into a conflict against Iran. Again, more lies.

"The President is now openly invoking the specter of World War III with respect to Iran. He ought to be held accountable also. I'm the only member of Congress who stepped forward on the issue of making Dick Cheney accountable. And now we have 21 members who've joined me. That's a step in the right direction. But I'm going to go beyond that. I'm going to call a privileged resolution, at which point, would force a vote --- at least if it's only on a procedural motion --- members are going to have to confront this issue of impeachment. They're not going to escape it. This is a question of defending our Constitution. It really is.

Just as our Congressional Representatives have gone deaf to the voice of millions of Americans, we, like the Constitution, have gone dumb to this Administration. And Kucinich understands this:

“Despite this groundswell of opposition to the unconstitutional conduct of office, Vice President Cheney continues to violate the U.S. Constitution by insisting the power of the executive branch is supreme.

“Congress must hold the Vice President accountable. The American people need to let Members of Congress know how they feel about this. The Vice President continues to use his office to advocate for a continued occupation of Iraq and prod our nation into a belligerent stance against Iran. If the Vice President is successful, his actions will ensure decades of disastrous consequences.”

So here we are. Kucinich is giving us a chance to let Congress know how we feel, while holding them and this Administration accountable for their actions. There will be a vote. People will have to make a decision. People will have to take action. And we who believe in the principles of this country have to act first. This is our country, our government and our consequences if we stand idly by.

Call your Representatives here. Call the Democratic Leadership here. Call in to the conference call tommorow night. Recommend, Digg, pass along this diary and raise your voices. There isn't much time.

Articles of Impeachment against V.P. Cheney:

1.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States by fabricating a threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

2.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States about an alleged relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda in order to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

3.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has openly threatened aggression against the Republic of Iran absent any real threat to the United States, and done so with the United States proven capability to carry out such threats, thus undermining the national security of the United States

Kucinich's list of supporting documents are here.

Co-sponsors for Articles of Impeachment:

H. Res. 333, Articles of Impeachment against the Vice President, has 21 cosponsors. They are: Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Robert Brady (D-PA), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN), Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA), Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA), Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), Rep. Henry Johnson (D-GA), Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA), Rep. James Moran (D-VA), Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ), Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-NY), Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), Rep. Diane Watson (D-CA), Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) and Rep. Albert Wynn (D-MD).

Kucinich Will Force Impeachment Vote Before Thanksgiving

Tuesday night in a nationwide phone call organized by Progressive Democrats of America, Dennis Kucinich reportedly announced:

he will go before the U.S. House of Representatives on a point of personal privilege to move the impeachment of Dick Cheney.  Mr. Kucinich stated he will bring the impeachment forward before Thanksgiving.

Kucinich introduced articles of impeachment against Vice President, Dick Cheney, back in April. H.R. 333 consists of three articles of impeachment, with supporting examples:

1.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States by fabricating a threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

2.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and Congress of the United States about an alleged relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda in order to justify the use of the United States Armed Forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security interests

3.) In his conduct while Vice President of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has openly threatened aggression against the Republic of Iran absent any real threat to the United States, and done so with the United States proven capability to carry out such threats, thus undermining the national security of the United States

Kucinich also provided roughly 50 supporting documents for the articles, on his Congressional website.

Over 80 cities/towns have now passed impeachment resolutions, with 50 more pending, and major polls, such as Zogby, have indicated a majority of Americans support impeachment proceedings. However, the MSM and members of Congress have failed to listen to the American people.

H.R. 333 has picked up 21 cosponsors, far short of what is needed to start proceedings, and House Speaker Pelosi has continually insisted that impeachment is "off the table".

But, as Kucinich holds nothing higher than his duties to defend the Constitution and represent the people of the United States, Kucinich is making sure that it gets back on. When asked about the Congress' failures to protect the Constituion, at the San Mateo Presidential Straw Poll, Kucinich replied:

"If Congress did the right thing, they would be talking ... about impeachment...

"I introduced House Resolution 333 because I heard from the American people and they said they wanted some response to make Dick Cheney accountable for the statements that he made that took us into a war based on lies. And the statements he made that would take us into a conflict against Iran. Again, more lies.

"The President is now openly invoking the specter of World War III with respect to Iran. He ought to be held accountable also. I'm the only member of Congress who stepped forward on the issue of making Dick Cheney accountable. And now we have 21 members who've joined me. That's a step in the right direction. But I'm going to go beyond that. I'm going to call a privileged resolution, at which point, would force a vote --- at least if it's only on a procedural motion --- members are going to have to confront this issue of impeachment. They're not going to escape it. This is a question of defending our Constitution. It really is."

Kucinich proves yet again his courage and leadership in Representative Democracy against fear and political calculation. He proves that he will not play party politics if it is against the interests of the United States and American citizens. He proves, again, his credentials for holding our highest office. Support Dennis Kucinich!