Putting It On the Table: Kucinich Says Bush Risking Impeachment

davidswanson

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Fri Jan-26-07 07:13 PM
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Putting It On the Table: Kucinich Says Bush Risking Impeachment

�The degree to which this President continues to take steps to go to war against Iran without consulting with the full Congress is the degree to which he is increasingly putting himself in jeopardy of an impeachment proceeding." - Dennis Kucinich

THANK DENNIS AND ENCOURAGE HIM

Here's the full press release from Kucinich's website:

Kucinich: The White House Is Up To Its Old Tricks; Is Preparing the United States for an Attack on Iran : President�s Actions Could Lead to Impeachment

Washington, Jan 26 - WASHINGTON, D.C. (Jan. 26) � Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) accused the White House of mounting a media blitz to prepare the U.S. public for an eventual attack on Iran. Today The Washington Post reported the Bush administration has authorized the U.S. military to kill or capture Iranian operatives inside Iraq as part of an aggressive new strategy to weaken Tehran�s influence across the Middle East.

�The White House is up to its old tricks again: Providing information by anonymous sources and portraying Iran as an aggressor in Iraq,� Kucinich said.

�The President is mischaracterizing U.S. action vis � vis Iran. In fact, the U.S. is already engaged in offensive and provocative acts against Iran. The President�s strategy, by portraying our involvement as only being on the defensive, is laying out the groundwork for him to attack Iran and bypass authorization by Congress,� Kucinich said.

The Washington Post article stated:
�A senior intelligence officer was more wary of the ambitions of the strategy. �This has little to do with Iraq. It�s all about pushing Iran�s buttons. It is purely political.� The official expressed similar views about other new efforts aimed at Iran, suggesting that the United States is escalating toward an unnecessary conflict to shift attention away from Iraq and to blame Iran for the United States� increasing inability to stanch the violence there.�

Kucinich said, �The White House spin machine is at it again: this time providing justification for a new war � a war against Iran.� Kucinich pointed out that while the term �officials� is mentioned 21 times in the Post article � not once are the officials identified by name.

In his January 10 address to the nation, President Bush asserted that succeeding in Iraq begins with addressing Iran and Syria. �Iran is providing material support for attacks on American troops. We will disrupt the attacks on our forces. We'll interrupt the flow of support from Iran and Syria. And we will seek out and destroy the networks providing advanced weaponry and training to our enemies in Iraq,� Bush said.

�The Washington Post is quoting strategically placed Administration sources who are providing justification for an attack against Iran,� Kucinich said. �This new twist on Iran, a country this Administration refuses to have free and open diplomatic talks with, is stating the Administration�s case for war.�

�The degree to which this President continues to take steps to go to war against Iran without consulting with the full Congress is the degree to which he is increasingly putting himself in jeopardy of an impeachment proceeding,� Kucinich said.