In Oregon, ‘Impeach’ Is Not Just A Bumper Sticker

In Oregon, ‘Impeach’ Is Not Just A Bumper Sticker
by Harry Esteve & Charles Pope



Every Thursday, they gather outside the congressman’s office, a sign-waving brigade of activists with one word on their minds — and their T-shirts:

“IMPEACH.”

“It can happen,” says John Bradach, one of the organizers of the weekly protest outside U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer’s headquarters in Northeast Portland. “And it should, even in the limited time left.”

Bradach joined the impeachment cause after losing a nephew in the Iraq war. But passion won’t change political reality.

In Washington, D.C., impeachment talk has been quashed by Democratic leaders. They are worried that a Republican backlash would derail upcoming votes on key issues, and that the fallout could hurt Democrats in next year’s elections.

Blumenauer, a Democrat who is one of the more liberal members of Congress, says flatly that “impeachment is not going to happen.”

In Oregon, however, the movement to bounce President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney before their terms end next year continues to pick up steam. Just ask Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who faced hostile questions from pro-impeachment forces at a recent town hall meeting. Blumenauer endured even rougher treatment at his town hall gathering late last week.

Impeachment also has become a hot topic in the early stages of the U.S. Senate race in Oregon, even though no one but the incumbent, Republican Gordon Smith, would have a hand in it. And, if chatter by bloggers and party insiders is any indication, impeachment has begun to rival the Iraq war as a new litmus test for Oregon Democrats.

“This is about more than just the war,” says Meredith Wood Smith, chairwoman of the state Democratic Party. “This is really about losing the Constitution of this country.”

more...

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/10/02/4255/

"Bush: 99% Fact Free"

the IMPEACH bumper sticker off my Oregon truck, the sticker beneath it reads "IMPEACH".

Oregonians have been calling for BushCo's heads since the screwy elections of 2000. I personally write monthly to Wyden, Blumenauer, DeFazio, and even "Talks-Like-A-Moderate/Votes-Like-A-Repug" Gordon Smith. Wyden's office is best at responding; their last letter even started with "Dear Pete" instead of the usual stuffy "Mr. ______".

Oh, I write the White House, too. Usually short and to the point (I know how little Dubya likes the readin' and word-makin'), my notes to the White House often read: We're gonna impeach you. Oh yes, we're gonna!

:applause: :applause: