Oemig knocks another block out of the impeachment dam

OLYMPIA – Sen. Eric Oemig, D-Kirkland, brought the reality of the Iraq war to the floor of the state Senate in an emotional speech on Thursday, and reminded his colleagues that the commander in chief can be relieved of duty.

“Our American tradition, our inherited tradition, is to aim high,” said Oemig in a point of personal privilege. “And we're bound to make mistakes. History's filled with them — Gulf of Tonkin, Iran-Contra. But it's with action that we fix our mistakes. And when people are honestly mistaken and they learn the truth, they either cease to be mistaken or they cease to be honest. If we do not act to correct our mistakes, our children will inherit them. We cannot restore the lives lost in Iraq, or the lost limbs or the lives shattered. But we can act.”

Thomas Jefferson, in drafting the United States Constitution, saw the need to include a means to remove the President of the United States from office. Jefferson’s Manual, Section LIII, 603, allows federal impeachment proceedings to be initiated by joint resolution of a state legislature.

“The truth has surfaced,” said Oemig. “Do we cease to be mistaken or do we cease to be honest?”

Impeachment efforts are also under way in the state legislatures of Illinois, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico and Vermont. On Friday, one day after the Washington State Senate discussed the matter, the Vermont Senate passed a resolution urging the U.S. Congress to impeach President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.

On Wednesday, Oemig, a rising voice in the anti-war and impeachment movements, will join Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson and other national leaders in Washington D.C. to demand Congress to consider impeachment.

“Justice can be served,” said Oemig. “It is both necessary and possible.”

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