WexlerWantsHearings Email Reports Increased Media Coverage

Here is a copy of the email I received this morning from WexleWants Hearing. I was especially heartened to see that some newspapers and at least one TV News show covered this issue. At the very least, people deserve to know about this so they can decide for themselves…

As we prepare to celebrate the New Year, my resolution is to hold George Bush and Dick Cheney accountable for their abuses of power. In the last days, we have made real progress:

The mainstream media has awakened to this movement and to the extraordinary support you have given it. Your calls, letters, and emails have clearly made a difference. Already 140,000 people have joined us in demanding impeachment hearings for Vice President Dick Cheney by signing up at WexlerWantsHearings.com.

The power of these combined voices are already shaking up the established order on Capitol Hill and throughout the mainstream media:

This week, the Miami Herald printed an article on our efforts that was syndicated in papers across the country, including the Detroit Free Press, Philadelphia Inquirer, Fort Worth Telegram, Contra Costa Times, Sacramento Bee, Houston Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, NC News & Observer, and others. (Click HERE to read the article.)

In addition, CBS4 in Miami became the first station we know of to run a television segment about the call for hearings. Video of that can be found HERE.)

Perhaps most importantly, just this morning the Philadelphia Inquirer courageously ran the full editorial I drafted along with my fellow Judiciary Committee members Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) and Rep. Tammy Baldwin (R-WI). (View it HERE .) Congratulations to the Inquirer for their willingness to publish a viewpoint that is so widely held by Americans – yet one that other leading national newspapers refused to publish.

We have come so far in just a few weeks. No longer can the mainstream media ignore our efforts and dismiss this cause as only part of the fringe left.

Already we are seeing tangible results from our combined effort. As you already know, Congress is well behind the American people on this issue. This is an uphill battle, but it’s one that has to be fought. It should not be the whole agenda, but it needs be *on* the agenda.

When Congress reconvenes in January, I plan to present a list to my Judiciary Committee colleagues of every single person that signed up at WexlerWantsHearings.com. I will go to more of my colleagues and ask them to join a letter in support of hearings. We will build on the momentum you have given us.

Last week, I spent an hour on Blog Talk Radio outlining thoughts and answering questions in regards to this work. So many people hit their site that their servers temporarily went down. If you’d like to hear the archived audio, please click HERE.

Let’s do our best to further spread the message so that list will be up to a quarter million. Please continue to blog, email friends, and insist that your family and friends sign up!

Thanks for your commitment.

Congressman Robert Wexler

P.S. I have been running online ads to make more people aware of our impeachment campaign. If you are interested in making a contribution to this effort you can click here.

A Unifying Voice

I have long been thinking we needed to impeach the current administration. As have thousands upon thousands of others. I felt so helpless. My voice seemed so small.

Then, I began to surf the internet and found many of those thousands who share my feelings and thoughts. And, thanks to the ongoing efforts of everyone, we kept the issue on the table regardless of what Pelosi says. Pelosi needs to be reminded of who pays her salary.

I was amazed at the number of organizing sites. Sites dedicated to the movement…and now, at long last we have a unifying voice. I am profoundly proud of Rep. Kucinich and his co-sponsors of H.R.333 (now H.R.799) for introducing the bill. I am proud of Rep. Wexler along with Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) who came to us with this. Rather than quit when the mainstream media refused to publish their op ed, they did not give up. They came to The People.

By coming to The People, Rep. Wexler has acknowledged us and given us a unifying voice. By rallying to his call, we can all come together to show Congress where true power comes from. We, the People have the power if we band together. Rep. Wexler becomes the conduit.

My only disappointment in Rep. Wexler’s discourse last night (on Blog Radio), was that he repeatedly spoke to and about Democrats. I don’t think this is a partisan issue. It is an American issue! Many Republican citizens I know are as angry as the Democrats. In fact, I have long thought that if I were Republican, I would be doubly angry. Republicans are supposed to “conserve” not destroy the Constitution! To truly unify us, I think he needs to speak to citizens of all parties.

Our work is not done. Now that we have a unifying voice, we need to keep the pressure on. Keep spreading the word. As mentioned in the Blog Radio discourse last night, writing to the media is also a good idea. As a result of citizen letters, one newspaper (the Miami Herald) has capitulated and finally ran (an edited) version of the op ed on their editorial page. And keep contacting your Representatives. As was also mentioned on the discourse last night, one Representative has signed on as a result of citizen contact. Don’t let up.

Let us show the media we want real news! If they continue to refuse to report on it, we can begin boycotting their sponsors…I, myself, have sent a couple of letters and plan more. There is much we can do without violence.

For the first time, since this began, I see a ray of hope. We have not won and there is much yet to do, but there is hope…

See comment #1 for link to a one-stop emailing of Representatives and newspaper editors.

Email Update from WexlerWantsHearings.com

Today, I received this email from the WexlerWants Hearings.com. I have already emailed my friends and family. Have you?

Whatever your party affiliation, if you value the Constitution, I believe we need to see this through and restore the Constitution. Then, we can debate the issues…

We have already reached 100,000 supporters. Thank You.

Now We Need Each of You To Send an Email to Ten More People to Get 250,000 Signed Up at WexlerWantsHearings.com by the End of the Year.

I can guarantee that your 100,000 voices calling for impeachment hearings will now be heard in Congress. Together, through our new Quarter Million Person Challenge, let’s now set a new goal of 250,000 Americans signing up to demand action.

It has been just 5 days since I called for impeachment hearings for Vice-President Dick Cheney and already over 100,000 people – including you – have answered that call by adding your name as an impeachment supporter at www.WexlerWantsHearings.com. This is a truly remarkable response that demonstrates the power that average, everyday Americans can have when we come together to pursue justice and accountability.

Never mind that the national media ignored my call and rejected an op-ed that I wrote along with my Judiciary Colleagues Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI). The Netroots and citizen activists like yourself are spreading our message and demanding action.

Quarter Million Person Challenge

Our movement continues to grow by the hour and the day. But, with the media blackout, I need your help to grow our effort. With 100,000 supporters already signed-up, if each of you e-mail ten of your friends (a “Chain-ey letter”) about www.WexlerWantsHearings.com and the need for Cheney impeachment hearings we will reach over a million Americans and perhaps we can reach a new goal of 250,000 signers by the end of the year!!

Join Me Thursday Night on Blog Radio to Discuss Our Next Steps

On this Thursday at 9:00 p.m. (EST) and 6:00 (PST), please join me as I appear on live on the Internet to discuss my efforts to convince Congress to hold impeachment hearing.

Congressman Wexler Live on Blog Radio:WHEN: Thursday, December 18, 9:00 pm (EST)/6:00 pm (PST)

WHERE: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/fpc (a link will be posted at www.wexlerwantshearings.com and www.wexlerforcongress.com )

OpenCongress.org – A Great Discovery

Yesterday, while surfing the topic of impeaching Cheney, I found a most wonderful site. OpenCongress.org is dedicated to

Quote from “About on Home Page”:

OpenCongress is a free, open-source, non-profit, and non-partisan web resource with a mission to make Congress more transparent and to encourage civic engagement.

And it is non-partisan. I have been looking for just such a site. It makes it so much easier to keep track of specific issues, bills, and the Representatives. I urge you to go check it out.

It is where I got the feed on H.Res. 333 – Impeaching Richard B. Cheney, Vice President of the United States, for High Crimes and Misdemeanors. (see side bar, lower right). OpenCongress.org has feeds to news articles and blog coverage of the bills, issues, and the Representatives, and is supported by Technorati with the feeds.

By the way, a very scary bill has passed the House and is currently before Congress. H.Res. 1955 “Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007. Very scary. Go read more about it in articles by people far more knowledgeable than I…

Impeachment of Cheney Update

I have been keeping an eye on the response to Robert Wexler’s call to action re: Impeachment of Cheney. A few minutes ago, there were over 85,000 people signed up. Various articles about it are being written, commented on, and Dugg like crazy. Is this a “mandate of the people” in progress? I certainly hope so. I want some truth.

Speaking of truth, I recently googled “How many people favor impeachment” It seems that 54% do according to a couple of sites I viewed. While I checked out some of the results, I came across “Kucinich Pushes Cheney Impeachment” (H.Res 333). The articles discusses some of the process that went on with Kucinich’s push. I was appalled at the way it seems (if the article is true) that they are playing with truth (and the Constitution). To table an investigation is to avoid finding truth. To table an investigation in the face of the evidence known and the “mandate of the people” is failure to defend the Constitution and thereby breaking oath. To do all this in some political game is beyond reprehensible.

At least, the Republicans, even if they were only playing a game, voted to not table the bill. It was the Democratic Speaker of the House who said the Democrats are not interested in impeaching Cheney. It was a democrat who moved to send it to “judiciary committee” when the motion to table the bill failed. Edit – added a bit over an hour after posting because I forgot this: And Yet, it was 3 democrats in the “judiciary committee” who are calling for action right now.

I am Independent for a reason.

The Bottom Line Remains: Is this what we want? I think that everyone has forgotten that our representatives work for us. We can vote them out (if the voting process is not tampered with). We can fire them and hire new people.

First things first, though. Let’s take care of this “Impeachment of Cheney”. Then, we will see if the politicians listen to us in the future, or not.

A Letter to My Mother

A couple of years ago, my mother converted to a Christian belief system – one that is near fundamentalist. She had never been religious before and we used to be able to talk about anything. We talked in reasonable and rational terms (well, pretty much). When she told me about her conversion, I admit I reacted rather vehemently. You see, I have spent years “recovering” from a fundamentalist belief system. I felt I had lost my mother all over again.

A little history:

When I was 3 years old, my parents divorced. Somehow, my father got custody of me. Unheard of in the very early 1960’s. Well, he left me with his mother (for 5 years until he remarried) and prevented my mother from having any further contact with me. When I was 18, I asked him for some data on her so I could find her – like a birthdate. He told me he “did not remember”. I still remember my ex-husband’s birthdate, but perhaps he was “just being a guy” in not remembering birthdates. Finally, when I was about 26, my mother contacted him (again). He relented and gave her my address. (More on this whole story in a later post),

Suffice it to say that my mother and I got along great. I found out where I get some of my characteristics. Finally I no longer felt like the black sheep. We have remained close ever since. Not so with my father. I have not spoken to him in many years. Not because of the issue with my mother, though. I have not spoken to him because of his current wife. (Which is another story for a later post.)

Back to the present:

Well, my mother has told me she is praying for my soul. I have told her I am praying for hers. We achieved a truce last year, but of course, she can’t resist bringing up her religion in nearly every conversation. My fear of having a wall between us has been realized.

Last week, she wrote me a letter. Yes, a handwritten letter. In it, she asked me to write to her about why I have “turned away from my faith”. Wow. She was wise to suggest writing as the medium of exchange as it retains space and distance so I can gather my thoughts before expressing them. We will have less room for argument.

I began writing and wrote so much stuff that I have had to set it aside for a time in order to gain perspective. I wanted to keep it simple for my first response. I envisioned a simple letter with references to more info upon request. I love my mother and do not want to overwhelm her. Yet, I do want to connect. Perhaps, she would ask for further information and we would develop a written exchange of ideas. Yet, as I sit down to write, I find I cannot keep it simple.  (it is a bit of a long read)

Impeachment May Be Back “On the Table”

Just a quick post to show you what we found on AlterNet.org this evening. Apparently, once the impeachment proposal got shuffled into a Judiciary Committee, at least one member saw fit to call for an investigation…Robert Wexler. It seems he had trouble getting this news into the traditional media, so he went online with it. He is calling for signatures in a petition pushing for an impeachment investigation on Vice President Cheney…Within 24 hours, Wexler already had over 30,000 signatures.

I encourage you to read more about it at either or both links mentioned above. There is also a video (on both Alternet’s and Wexler’s sites) of Robert Wexler making a powerful speech in regards to this issue. He makes very good points. I especially agree with his stating that dealing with this is important for history’s sake as well as the dangerousness of setting a precedent by letting this go by.

I for one would at least like to see a thorough investigation. Whatever the outcome, we could lay this matter to rest. If it shows that Vice President Cheney is innocent of the proposed charges, then we can move forward. But these are serious charges and if he is guilty, we need to hold him accountable.

I have paraphrased this information and am in a bit of a hurry, meaning I could have gotten some of the details wrong. I will take a deeper look in a day or two, but I must go for now. Please read the articles for yourself and if you agree with Robert Wexler, submit your email on his site in support of his efforts.

Breaking Even With Murphy

Or, “Balancing Yin with Yang” as the fish above seem to suggest. (I found the image at GetWallpaper.com – click on image to go there.) Sometimes life can be so excruciating! This past month is one of those times.

First, my significant other (hereafter to be identified as SO), loses time at work for being sick (oh, no).

Then I make some sales (yay!).

Then the car needs a brake job (oh, no!).

Then he gets a raise and I save some money by upgrading our internet service (yay – faster service for less money!).

Now, the car has a new problem and my SO may not be able to get it home without being towed. (oh, no, not again!)

whew!

And, people wonder why I have become so cynical. These are actual events in my life (not my imagination) and to me they seem to be a fair sampling of my normal reality.

I may actually be getting used to it, finally. Or, perhaps I am just shell shocked. I feel so calm right now.