‘I feel that this is even more serious than Watergate’

State Rep. Betty Hall is leading Bush-Cheney impeachment efforts

By Marc Smith / Cabinet Press

BROOKLINE, NH -- For at least one Brookline resident, the last day in office for President George Bush — Jan. 20, 2009 — is not nearly soon enough.

So Betty Hall, a long-time state representative, is heading an initiative to have Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney impeached.

At a lively 86 she is a self-proclaimed dabbler in controversial topics. Though it will surely ignite heated debate, she says, this impeachment resolution is an urgent matter that cannot be ignored. She has even pledged to begin fasting if her voice is not heard.

According to a document written by Hall, the impeachment initiative was prompted by Bush’s and Cheney’s involvement in violations of treaties, issues related to the war in Iraq, illegal wiretapping and detention practices, along with numerous other accusations.

Hall is the real deal and no rookie on presidential impeachment procedures.

Active in state politics during the early ‘70s, she held the NH state chairmanship of Common Cause organization and was involved with efforts to impeach President Richard Nixon.

“I feel that this is even more serious than Watergate,” she said, “The president should be held accountable.”

The purpose of the impeachment resolution is to ultimately prompt federal investigations into the actions of the president and vice president.

The feedback she’s received has been mostly positive; support has poured in from the general public and political activist groups from around the nation, she said.

But Hall and her supporters are working against the always-spinning clock. Bush’s presidency will officially come to an end in less than a year, and history shows that impeachment proceedings — from start to finish — are likely to take more than a year.

This limited timeframe has some people reluctant to lend support, says Hall.

“We need to do this, no matter what,” she said, “We don’t want to have a precedent set that our president can assume the kind of powers that Bush has usurped.”

Even if the impeachment process is not completed by the end of Bush’s term, investigations and the proceedings can carry on after the next president takes his or her place in office.

Hall has taken the initial steps to bring her cause to other legislators at a hearing of the State and Federal Relations Committee on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 1 p.m. in the Legislative Office Building in Concord.

The committee will determine whether a recommendation regarding Hall’s resolution will be brought before the entire New Hampshire House.

“It’s important to raise the issue, get it out there, so people can speak up and talk to their legislators,” said Hall.

Hall is part of the Women Making a Difference group, or the WMDs for short. WMD, which has a membership of over 250 women throughout New Hampshire, is promoting the public hearing and organizing a rally prior to the hearing.

According to Nancy White of Amherst, one of the original members of the WMD, many individuals and organizations advocating the impeachment have been in contact with her to offer backing.

“Our country is in dire straits and sinking deeper into the denial of lies, corruption, high crimes and treason being committed in our name,” White wrote in a letter to the editor.

She calls Hall’s resolution a “most courageous” effort to bring forth justice. The conduct of George Bush and Dick Cheney can be described as a “crisis of monumental proportion. We need to speak up.”

Original here