I saw a funny bumper sticker recently that said: “Impeach Bush — and we’ll call it even.”
Apparently, however, there are at least a few folks out there who aren’t kidding about this. Roll Call reported yesterday that Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), who earlier in his career helped draw articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon, attended a meeting last year with a “group of prominent left-wing attorneys and legal scholars to hear arguments on the matter” of Bush’s impeachment.
Conyers didn’t pursue it, but the thought seems to have stuck in his head a bit.
Some attendees, led by former Attorney General Ramsey Clark, had already drafted preliminary articles of impeachment in hopes of encouraging Members of Congress to take the issue seriously. But the vast majority of participants opposed taking such measures, according to those who attended.
Ensuing reports indicated that Conyers had decided to drop the matter. But within months the Michigan lawmaker took to the House floor to decry what he called a “threat to democracy” posed by the Bush administration’s actions on Iraq.
While Conyers never said the word “impeachment” in his speech, he suggested the questions surrounding the Iraq war merited a thorough examination at his committee, Judiciary, which would draw up any such articles. He also cited approvingly a then-recent essay in which Nixon White House counsel John Dean argued for Bush’s impeachment.
“It deserves wide dissemination,” Conyers said.
In a follow-up, Roll Call asked Conyers’ office this week if the congressman had plans to draft articles of impeachment against Bush. They didn’t exact rule out the possibility.
“We are aware of no plans to file articles of impeachment at present,” the aide said.
Sounds like Conyers is leaving the door ajar, doesn’t it?
Of course, any reasonable person should realize this doesn’t matter. Even if Conyers did draw articles, there’s absolutely no chance the Judiciary Committee would ever consider the matter. No matter how much you disapprove of Bush, this isn’t the kind of thing you should get your hopes up over.
Still, it’s amusing to ponder the possibility.
Just as a historical note, if Conyers did draw articles, Bush would become the eighth president to face a House impeachment resolution, following Tyler, Johnson, Cleveland, Hoover, Truman, Nixon, and Clinton.