This is no surprise. How could it be? Did anyone really expect Bush would just roll over and submit to investigations? We all are aware of the crimes of this Administration. When did crooks ever give themselves up to sure punishment without a battle? Meh.
I wrote a diary on this shortly after the 2006 election entitled "Impeachment is Not the Real Battle." I'm no political genius, so it must have been pretty obvious that even I could predict what was to happen when the Dems took back control of the Congress.
Join me below. Hear me out. Puleeze.
Back then, I said:
I have no problem with activist movements agitating for impeachment. That's good public relations, in my opinion. If we can find a way to tap the deep discontent of the American public against Bush and Cheney, that's fine with me. But that is not the issue our Democratic majority will be facing in January.
We are going to see a big battle then. Does anyone really believe that either Bush or Cheney (and their wonderdog AG Gonzales) are going to humbly turn over whatever information our investigatory Committees and subcommittees ask for? Think about the past few years, how this Administration has gotten its Rubberstamp Congress to virtually legislate their innocence! They have managed to get legislation pushed through Congress and the Senate that greatly enhance their Unitary Executive Branch. They will not give up that power easily.
So the battle. Let's say Conyers asks for information. It is refused. He subpoenas Cheney, for example. Cheney refuses. What next? Does this go to the Supreme Court? Given its make-up, there is no surety the Court will be helpful. Hell, even when it was helpful, in Hamden, Bush and Cheney and their gang just disregarded it and tried to pass even more laws to bolster their power.
There will be stonewalling the likes of which will make Nixon's actions seem like a walk in the park. These guys are crooks and they are out to save their skins.
So what I would suggest we watch are the Committees themselves and what happens while they try to get the information necessary for them to do their jobs of oversight. There's a great group of people here at Daily Kos doing a project of covering each Committee (it's in the DKos Wiki, but I don't recall the name of the project - hopefully someone in comments will provide). But that's where the action is going to be.
Let me first say that not only would I love to see this entire Administration impeached, I'd like to see Bush and Cheney, et al. behind bars. Ok, now I have that out of the way.
First, does anyone here think Conyers or Leahy aren't aware of what just happened? And that perhaps they were predicting it themselves? Does anyone think Waxman isn't aware of what's been going on? Or Hodes? Or any of the other excellent committee members we've been watching over the past few weeks, in both the Senate and Congress? Well, I would say none of us think that.
There's nothing this evil crew in the White House would like better than to see us all running around like chickens with our heads cut off, screaming for impeachment, screaming period. You know something? I'm tired of screaming. I am beyond outrage, beyond anger.
We know what they are doing. Kagro X's excellent
diary lays out the Bush game plan and the difficulties involved in Congressional subpoena power and holding members of the Executive Branch in contempt. Difficulties. But not impossibilities.
We have to watch very carefully what is going on. We need to get our facts straight. I for one am not interested in anything symbolic, be it impeachment or a contempt charge that cannot be enforced.
We need to support Leahy and Conyers, and the best way to do that is to pay attention to what they are doing. When the document dump came out, TPM Cafe was all over it, made a project of having tons of bloggers sift through the mess to find damning information. And that information was found and will continue to be found.
I think we all forget that Nixon's resignation was not easily obtained. So many things could have gone wrong ... Deep Throat could have kept his mouth shut, at the Washington Post, Kay Graham could have taken the safe route when threatened by Nixon's Administration. It was not an easy situation. And it isn't an easy situation now.
I don't think now is the time for rage. They want us to be enraged, they really do. I think now is the time for resolve. We must win this battle. We have to do everthing we can, as citizens, to help those who must fight this runaway, stonewalling, corrupt, criminal Administration.
I've never been more proud of this community than I have been recently ... reading the zillion comment live-blogging of Waxman's Committee hearing on the Plame outing, reading Kagro X's diary just a little while ago coherently spelling out the real game plan Bush and his cronies are playing.
Frankly, I think it'll scare the pants off these crooks to see us strong and resolved, not yelling, not enraged, but completely aware of the evil of this Administration and working diligently and openly to help defeat them.