Democracy for New Mexico

More National Attention for NM Impeachment Resolution

The Nation's John Nichols comments on the New Mexico impeachment resolution, Jack Cafferty's respectful reporting about it on CNN and its premise being bolstered by the ongoing Scooter Libby trial. Building, building, building. As was said at the resolution press conference, "'We created a ripple. Your voice is going to turn it into a tidal wave hopefully." Only if we keep up the pressure...

Where is Richardson on impeachment?
What I and many others are awaiting is a definitive word from the presidential candidate from NM, Gov. Bill Richardson, on this matter. You'd think he'd be weighing in on an impeachment effort being launched within his own state legislature, but you'd be wrong. Apparently he'd rather talk about other matters less "controversial." Personally, I think if Richardson wants serious consideration as a presidential candidate, he should comment seriously about perhaps the most important issue on the table: Bush's lawbreaking and what to do about it. What about it, Governor?

Minutemen vs. ACLU: 2/11/07 at Congregation Albert

From Congregation Albert Brotherhood:
Brunch and Speakers: Immigration and the Border Region
Speakers: Bob Wright, Deputy National Executive Director, Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and Peter Simonson, Executive Director, American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico
Social Hall of Congregation Albert
3800 Louisiana NE, Albuquerque
Sunday February 11, 10 AM
Brunch $11 Nonmembers, Debate Only Free
RSVP by Feb. 8th at 883-1818, ext. 3203

New Mexico is a border state and consequently is central to the debate on illegal immigration. Gov. Bill Richardson declared a state of emergency last year in four border counties citing a chaotic situation involving illegal alien smuggling and drug shipments. Richardson, while seeming to take a strong stand against illegal immigration, then contradictorily signed legislation giving some illegal aliens in-state tuition rates at our public universities. He also issued an executive order that in effect prohibits state and local enforcement agencies from cooperating with federal authorities solely in regard to inquiring about a person’s immigration status.

Meanwhile, prior to the midterm elections, the Republican controlled U. S. Congress was unable to enact any meaningful immigration reform. Still, demonstrations against any proposed crackdown on illegal immigration brought thousands of protesters into the streets across the country. Here in the southwest we have witnessed the rise of citizens groups such as the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, viewed by some as vigilantes and by others as a needed grassroots effort to step in where government has failed. Other groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union are concerned with defending the civil and constitutional rights of immigrants, whether they are here legally or not. The illegal immigration debate encompasses a wide range of difficult issues and conflicting opinions.

Join us at 10:00 am on Sunday, February 11th in the Social Hall of Congregation Albert (3800 Louisiana NE) when our speakers will be Bob Wright, Deputy National Executive Director, Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and Peter Simonson, Executive Director, American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico.

The cost for brunch is $8 for Brotherhood/Sisterhood members and $11 for others, including the general public. Please reserve before Feb. 8th by calling 883-1818, ext. 3203, and leaving your name, phone number and the number attending. We are expecting a large turnout so make your reservations early.

Editor's Note: If you don't want to purchase the brunch, you can still attend the speaker portion for free and sit at the side of the room for the debate only.

Latest on NM Impeachment Effort

The effort to pass a resolution of impeachment against Bush and Cheney in the NM Legislature got front page coverage in the Albuquerque Journal this morning in this article. Quotes:

"Everyone says, 'This is symbolic.' So was dumping tea in Boston Harbor," Grubesic said. "We need to send a clear message to the rest of the world that we're not as insane as our administration is."

... It has been a hot-potato issue within the New Mexico Democratic Party: The party during its convention of more than 1,200 delegates last spring added a call for impeachment of Bush to its platform. But top-tier Democratic politicians, including Gov. Bill Richardson, were quick to distance themselves from that position.

...Both senators said they expect to take some heat for the proposed resolution but believe it can pass the Senate. "Politicians seem to last longer the less controversial they are— don't take on the tough issues; don't take a stand," Grubesic said. "With something important as this, I don't think you can just sit on your hands."

Also, the time of the press conference on the NM Impeachment Resolution has been changed:

From Gerald.Gonzalez@nmlegis.gov:
This Tuesday, January 23rd, at 2PM (not 1PM as previously stated), Senators Gerald Ortiz y Pino (D-ABQ) and John T. L. Grubesic (D-Santa Fe) will introduce their resolution to impeach President George Bush and Vice-President Richard Cheney. Eight Senators in total have signed the Resolution including the Chair of the Judiciary Committee, Cisco McSorley, and the Chair of the Rules Committee Linda Lopez. Based on a resolution crafted by Phil Burk of impeachbush.tv and the national impeachment movement, the resolution makes four charges, three of which are violations of the US Constitution.

The press Conference will directly follow the introduction of the excellent Joint Memorial opposing the creation of a National ID Card in New Mexico sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez and House Majority Leader Ken Martinez.

Who: Mother Media and Citizens from all over New Mexico
Where: The Capitol Building Rotunda
When: Tuesday, January 23rd, 2PM to 3PM
What: Senators Gerald Ortiz y Pino and John T. L. Grubesic to Introduce Impeachment Resolution in the New Mexico Senate

The charges in full:

WHEREAS, George W. Bush and Richard B. Cheney conspired with others to defraud the United States of America by intentionally misleading congress and the public regarding the threat from Iraq in order to justify a war in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 371; and 

WHEREAS, George W. Bush has admitted to ordering the national security agency to conduct electronic surveillance of American civilians without seeking warrants from the foreign intelligence surveillance court of review, duly constituted by congress in 1978, in violation of Title 50 United States Code, Section 1805; and

WHEREAS, George W. Bush and Richard B. Cheney conspired to commit the torture of prisoners in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Chapter 113C, the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the Geneva Conventions, which under Article VI of the United States constitution are part of the "supreme Law of the Land"; and

WHEREAS, George W. Bush and Richard B. Cheney acted to strip American citizens of their constitutional rights by ordering indefinite detention without access to legal counsel, without charge and without the opportunity to appear before a civil judicial officer to challenge the detention, based solely on the discretionary designation by the president of a United States citizen as an "enemy combatant", all in subversion of law.

*******
More info on Impeachment
https://impeachpac.org
https://impeachbush.tv
https://articlesofimpeachment.net

Support NM Effort to Impeach Bush and Cheney

Editor's Note: A press conference about NM Senator Gerald Ortiz y Pino's impeachment bill will be held at the Rotunda in the Roundhouse in Santa Fe on Tuesday, January 23. Meet at the ground floor of the Roundhouse at Noon for lobbying and then join the press conference at 1:00 PM in the Capitol Rotunda. All are invited and urged to attend! For more information contact legislative aide Desi Brown at (505)256-0668 or desibrown@comcast.net. Click for flyer (doc).

From Terry Riley:
Please act on this request ASAP. We have a chance to force our national legislators to do what they seem to be afraid to do. We need to show the world that we do not support Bush, especially since it is very likely that he will be attacking Iran very soon. We have to act NOW before the whole world acts against us.

There is a bill being presented in the legislature this Tuesday to bring impeachment proceedings against Bush and Cheny. According to the Constitution, if a state legislature passes a bill like this and it is presented to Congress, Congressman Udall has agreed to carry it (I believe), the Congress has to put aside all other matters and begin impeachment proceedings. WOW! Please be a part of this very important action:

Please thank:
Sen. Gerald Ortiz y Pino: jortizyp@aol.com
Sen. John Grubesic, Rules Committee Vice Chair: john.grubesic@nmlegis.gov

Please ask these Rules Committee Members to cosponsor:
Sen. Linda Lopez, Rules Committee Chair: linda.lopez@nmlegis.gov
Sen. Cisco McSorley: cisco.mcsorley@nmlegis.gov
Sen. Dede Feldman: dede.feldman@nmlegis.gov

Send them a message something like this (change and expand as you like):

Please cosponsor, along with Senators Ortiz y Pino and Grubesic, the resolution to petition the U.S. House of Representatives to impeach President Bush and Vice President Cheney. If we go into the next presidency having established that a president can lie us into war, spy on us in violation of the law, detain without charge, and torture, we will be throwing away the democracy we've struggled to keep and expand for over 200 years. We all have a solemn duty to work for the impeachment of men who have made our executive branch of government into a monarchy. You are in a position to play a key role in making this happen. Please do the right thing. Make the choice you would want your great-grandchildren to be proud of.

More information: https://www.afterdowningstreet.org/nm

Thank you,
Terry Riley
Veterans for Peace
Military Families Speak Out

Editor's Note: Also see our earlier post.

Elevator 9 Trial Postponed

From Bud and the Elevator 9:
The Elevator 9 Trial has been POSTPONED. There will also be NO PROTEST against the war at the courthouse scheduled for January 25th so please pass this on. We as of yet do not have a new trial date scheduled. To quote from the court document "hearing is vacated and that the matter will be
rescheduled at the Court's convenience." We appreciate all the help and sympathy and concern over
our impending trial that we have received from many, many people - THANK YOU!!! - and we ask that you be with us again when we receive our new court date.  --Pace e Bene! Bud Ryan

Editor's Note: See our original post on this for more information.

Join Martin Sheen in Supporting The Elevator Nine

Some of the Santa Fe Elevator 9 peace activists during the reading of many of the thousands of names of dead civilians and soldiers in the Iraq War

UPDATE 1.18.07: The trial has been postponed. Click here for more information.

Editor's Note: The Elevator (or Santa Fe) Nine are being tried in connection with their participation in civil disobedience last September at the Federal Building in Santa Fe while attempting to collect the signature of Sen. Pete Domenici on a Declaration of Peace.

From Bud and the Elevator Nine:
PLEASE Come SUPPORT the Elevator 9 Trial on 1/25 and STAND UP against the war. Martin Sheen will be there. SHALOM!

Hello Friends, the Elevator 9 needs your SUPPORT!!! Please attend our trial on January 25th at 9AM at the Federal Court House in Albuquerque at 421 Gold SW (directions below). Please bring your family, friends, coworkers, fellow PEACE activists, congregation members, and anyone else who standsfor PEACE and is against the war in Iraq.

Activist and actor Martin Sheen will also be there to lend support and STAND UP FOR PEACE and AGAINST THIS WAR!

Because of Mr. Sheen's presence we expect both print and television media so please bring your signs and banners for PEACE and AGAINST THE WAR. Please let the media know visually about the 3,015+ American dead and the 655,000+ Iraqi dead. Please let them know of the 22,057+ Americans wounded and the countless Iraqis wounded. This should be a good venue for getting our PEACEFUL ANTIWAR MESSAGE (as well as some facts about the war) out to our fellow New Mexicans.

We know this is a work day but we could really use your SUPPORT!!! We hope you can make the effort to attend. We're not sure of the capacity of the courtroom or how long this trial will be, but we hope to have a rotating group (depending on the authorities) moving from inside the courtroom to back outside at the Demonstration for PEACE. Please remember to treat everyone working at the Federal Courthouse or any Police or Security with respect. If you are in attendance at the trial please don't be unruly as it may have negative consequences for the Elevator 9.

For Father John Dear's account of what happened read this article on Common Dreams. For more on the story and photos of some of us in the elevator visit the Pax Christi New Mexico website.

DIRECTIONS to the Courthouse:

• from the I-40 and I-25 Interchange in Albuquerque
• continue on I-25 South
• take exit 224B toward Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave/ Central Ave.
• at the 2nd light make a right turn onto Central Ave.
• continue west on Central past Broadway & underneath the Railroad trestle
• the Courthouse is located at 421 Gold SW at the corner of 5th & Gold, one block south of Central
• there are several parking lots around the Courthouse & metered parking on the street as well

PLEASE PASS THIS ON and thank you for your past support and your time and effort in Standing Up for PEACE & JUSTICE. Questions? Email bud@siochainworld.org.

Pace e Bene! Bud Ryan

Guest Blog: Support NM Impeachment Effort

Submitted by guest blogger Terry Riley:
I am mad as hell and I am going to do something. I just got an e-mail from a friend of mine in Santa Fe. Leland Lehrman worked with me on the paper ballot / election reform legislation in the 2005 and 2006 legislative sessions. He is proposing that we get out state legislature to bring impeachment proceedings against President Bush. Please read his message. He is right, the states can initiate the action and then the "Democrats" will have to deal with it. Please read, and contact your legislator.

It looks like Bush is going to put another 30,000 soldiers into Iraq after the first of the year and hold the troop strength at 185,000 for two years. Think about our soldiers. In order to maintain this troop level the Pentagon will have to put every soldier and EVERY reservist into a tight rotation, much more than any individual can be expected to survive.

Save our Soldiers! Impeach Bush
Terry Riley
Veterans for Peace
Son of a Veteran
Veteran
Brother of a Veteran
Father of a Veteran
Father or a combat Veteran

Leland Lehrman's Email:

Friends and Legislators,
We're working on a resolution that will impeach President Bush at the NM State Level. According to Jefferson's Rules of the Federal House, if an impeachment resolution passes at the State Level, the Federal Government is required to stop all business and hear impeachment proceedings immediately.

Quoting from ImpeachFor Peace.org:
"In the House of Representatives there are various methods of setting an impeachment in motion: by charges made on the floor on the responsibility of a Member or Delegate (II, 1303; III, 2342, 2400, 2469; VI, 525, 526, 528, 535, 536); by charges preferred by a memorial, which is usually referred to a committee for examination (III, 2364, 2491, 2494, 2496, 2499, 2515; VI, 552); or by a resolution dropped in the hopper by a Member and referred to a committee (April 15, 1970, p. 11941- 2); by a message from the President (III, 2294, 2319; VI, 498); by charges transmitted from the legislature of a State (III, 2469) or Territory (III, 2487) or from a grand jury (III, 2488); or from facts developed and reported by an investigating committee of the House (III, 2399, 2444)."

According to Section 604 of the Manual, "direct proposition to impeach is a question of high privilege in the House and at once supersedes business otherwise in order under the rules governing the order of business." It does not lose its privilege just because "a similar proposition has been made at a previous time during the same session of Congress." On the other hand, "a resolution simply proposing an investigation, even though impeachment may be a possible consequence, is not privileged." Where, however, "a resolution of investigation positively proposes impeachment or suggests that end, it has been admitted as of privilege."

It is also possible to impeach through the submission of a memorial by any private citizen, given a Congressional Committee picks it up and acts on it. This type of initiative has been organized by Impeach for Peace here.

Furthermore, Impeachment of the President was passed with overwhelming support by the NM Democratic Party when it held its most recent statewide Platform hearings. It is an official policy of the NM Democratic Party to impeach President Bush.

We will have to repeat that over and over because it is not common knowledge.

Also, Georgia Dem. Rep. Cynthia McKinney has written articles of impeachment during the last few weeks of her term and we can use those at the State Level. I need everyone to call Senators John Grubesic and Gerry Ortiz y Pino (Santa Fe and Albuquerque) and ask them to support an impeachment resolution and to help us get it drafted before the January session. Rep. Peter Wirth is my target for the House, although we may have better luck with someone else. Please call your Legislators now, and email, mail or fax this information to them.

Grubesic and Wirth are Santa Fe's own, we can hopefully count on them. Ortiz y Pino is one of  the best legislators in the NM House overall; he is associated with the NM PACE and the Albuquerque Peace and Justice social fabric. A social worker by profession.

Grubesic: 820-1825
Ortiz y Pino: 505.250.1280
Wirth: 988-1668

Also, essential to success with be Speaker of the House Ben Lujan, Majority Leader Ken Martinez, Sen Majority Leader Michael Sanchez and President Pro Tem Ben Altamirano. Get familiar with them at the NM Legislature website. All are Democrats. The Governor will have to be invoved as well. With Democratic control of every governmental body in the State, NM has a good chance to make history here.

Please forward to all interested. I have yet to hear from anyone, but will be in their offices or on the phone again with them this week coming. Once we get the OK to draft, we will proceed to incorporate McKinney's articles of impeachment and those in the book, "The Case for Impeachment." Also, below, I include information compiled by of the Green Party, much of which is at the website ArticlesOfImpeachment.net where you can get completely sorted out about the legal methods and more.

Leland Lehrman (505) 982-3609

Editor's Note: This is a guest blog by Terry Riley. If you'd like to submit a post for consideration as a guest blog, contact me by clicking on the Email Me link at the upper left-hand corner of our main page.

Scrooge Is Alive and Well in Chertoff's America

Michael Chertoff, the skeletal head of Homeland Security, was recently grandstanding all over the media as he is prone to do periodically. This time he was making rather hysterical claims that hundreds of meatpacking workers recently rounded up in six states and taken to undisclosed locations by Homeland Security were involved in an organized identify theft ring. Surprise -- it turns out that criminal acts, including "stolen" identification accusations, were the basis of only 65 of the 1,282 arrests. The rest were guilty of only "run of the mill immigration violations" or they turned out to be legally documented. Read this.

For example, of the 261 workers rounded up at the Swift plant in Grand Island, Nebraska, only 15 ended up being indicted for using someone else's identity to gain employment. Officials had to admit there was no evidence of their involvement in an ID theft ring or any other organized process. Here's a recent diary on Daily Kos about similar raids in Colorado (with lots of photos).

If only Chertoff were this heavily focused on making things right in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina's tragic wake. Does anyone in the Bush administration EVER tell the truth? Not when political gain is at stake. With this bunch, political hay can be made with ANY issue without setting off any alarm bells in their shrunken consciences. All the world's a political stage, even if people are dying, getting their limbs blown up or having their families destroyed right before Christmas because they had the AUDACITY to accept jobs offered to them by corporate America. You won't see anyone from Swift or the outfit that provided the workers with the fake IDs getting arrested. Just those who took the brutal, low-paying jobs so their families could eat and have a place to live.

In another really Christmasy detail, it's being reported that children of those seized are being left on their own, including at least one nursing baby. Family values in action. The way law enforcement is acting you'd think the immigrants were murderers or worse. These raids were carried out by heavily armed SWAT teams, despite the fact that civil, not criminal, warrants were used to meet legal requirements. Just another case of selective application of the law performed in a way that most harms ordinary people while letting corporate forces behind the scenes remain scot free.

Another ironic twist is that it now appears that most of those seized were bussed across state lines and eventually released without charge. Chertoff doesn't care. He got his headlines, and only the families of the workers will suffer through the holiday season. If only we could get those ghosts that haunted Ebenezer Scrooge to make late night visits to Mr. Chertoff -- and to those among us who support these sorts of un-American round-ups -- we might get somewhere in crafting a just and coherent immigration policy.

Amnesty International Attorney to Lead Discussion on Military Commissions Act and Abuse of Power

From the :
The Military Commissions Act, Torture, and the 'War on Terror' is the subject of this presentation / discussion taking place at the First Unitarian Church (3701 Carlisle NE - Albuquerque) on Thursday, November 30th, at 7:00 PM. The event is sponsored by the First Unitarian Church of Albuquerque Social Justice Council.

The guest speaker is Amnesty International lawyer and Amnesty International Director for Human Rights and International Justice, Jumana Musa. Discussion will include the ramifications of the Military Commissions Act and abuse of power by the current U.S. administration. For more information call Renee at 505-344-5735.

Join us for a discussion about current U.S. law, policy and practice in the 'War on Terror'. Jumana Musa has been Amnesty's legal observer at military commission hearings for detainees facing trial at Guantanamo Bay for the last two years. Bring your questions about pardoning torture, eliminating the writ of habeas corpus for declared enemy combatants and detaining prisoners indefinitely. Find out what can we do about this abuse of power.

JUMANA MUSA BIOGRAPHY
Jumana Musa is a human rights attorney and activist. She is currently the Advocacy Director for Domestic Human Rights and International Justice at Amnesty International, where she addresses the domestic and international impact of the Bush administration's "war on terror" on human rights. She was one of the first human rights attorneys allowed to travel to the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and serves as Amnesty International's legal observer at military commission proceedings on the base.

She is also an adjunct lecturer at Georgetown University's Arab Studies program, teaching a class entitled, Human Rights in the Middle East and North Africa. Formerly, she worked as a policy attorney for the National Network to End Domestic Violence and handled international relations and immigrations issues as a fellow in the office of Congressman Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. Ms. Musa holds a BA in International Relations from Brown University and a JD from Georgetown University Law Center.

________________
Jumana Musa
Advocacy Director for
Domestic Human Rights and International Justice
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE Washington DC, 20003
(202) 544-0200 ext. 241, (202) 546-7142 fax,
jmusa@aiusa.org
www.amnestyusa.org

Behold the Satanic Symbol Wreath!

Sign o' the times: A homeowners association in Pagosa Springs, CO has decided to fine one of their own in order to protect townspeople from the nasty effects of what some are calling a Satanic symbol, shown above. According to an AP story, "residents were offended by the sign and the board will not allow signs, flags etc. that can be considered divisive":

A homeowners association in southwestern Colorado has threatened to fine a resident $25 a day until she removes a Christmas wreath with a peace sign that some say is an anti-Iraq war protest or a symbol of Satan. Some residents who have complained have children serving in Iraq, said Bob Kearns, president of the Loma Linda Homeowners Association in Pagosa Springs. He said some residents have also believed it was a symbol of Satan. Three or four residents complained, he said.

"Somebody could put up signs that say drop bombs on Iraq. If you let one go up you have to let them all go up," he said in a telephone interview Sunday. Lisa Jensen said she wasn't thinking of the war when she hung the wreath. She said, "Peace is way bigger than not being at war. This is a spiritual thing."

I do seem to recall a time when we were known as the land of the free and the home of the brave, but apparently that's now considered a pre-9/11 thing. Our freedoms and the courage to express them are now trumped by the controling interests of privatized homeowners associations and their rules. I wonder what would happen in Pagosa Springs if someone had the audacity to put up a sign honoring the Prince of Peace on his Christmas birthday celebration.... Mighty devisive and Satanic!

What next? Xtian fundies demanding people take down their Xmas trees because they're pagan symbols?

Here are the facts on the origins of the peace symbol and what it really means.

Which reminds me. The Xmas light peace sign we've had hanging on the front of our house for a few years now (above) needs some sprucing up for the holiday season. Many lights have burned out over the past few months. Maybe we'll add some evergreen branches in solidarity with the banned wreath in Pagosa. By the way, over the years we've only had one instance of someone tearing down our sign in the dead of night. Not bad considering the atmosphere of hatred for peace the Bushies have been nourishing for 6 years now.