Step one: Impeach & remove Gonzales NOW, before Congress goes into recess. & then step two . . .

[FogerRox]

.... before Congress goes into recess. Otherwise we all know that we can be facing one of those recess appointments by EL Presidente Shrubio. Thats a pretty good reason, right ?

Pretty good reason #2 is that its a warm up for the bigger fish we should fry.

Who will be president after Bush ?

We are nearing the time that people need to discuss who will be selected as a placeholder president. I wrote a diary at D-KOs about this:

. . . any impeachment process that elevates a democrat to the White House will be viewed as a coup, and would likely cripple the Democratic party for a generation. Those that might consider Robert Byrd instead of Nancy Pelosi still face the problem that the process will be veiwed as a democratic coup. Imagine all the bad blood that would create....

If republicans think that DEMS want to elevate Pelosi to the White House, not one will be joining us Dems at the table, thats for damn sure. Which is why I support an effort whose net result would be to remove Cheney, then Bush, and place a republican in the White House, before the end of this year. In fact I will go as far as saying that if impeachment & removal of at least Cheney doesn't happen in '07, it aint gonna happen at all.

The counterpoint to that is that DEMs dont want to see the placeholder president run for re-election. I think with a placeholder like Richard Lugar, the Senator is in the twilight of his tenure, that is not a worry. Additionally he does have a modicum of respect on both sides of the isle. Plus, removing Bush and Cheney will unite DEMs and I would anticipate a very high turnout, since the DEMs would be showing us something worth voting for. The flip side of that is that if DEMs continue to lay down for the Bush cabal, turnout might be low, the conditions for a 3rd party candidate thriving, would be prime.

Who will be president after Bush ?

....and found this good diary that follows a similar vein.

We need to start people talking about who should serve out the last 12-18 months of Bush's Presidency. Rather than argue over the ground of whether or not they should be impeached, we need to start seeing polls about who you would support to replace them.

This accomplishes the impeachment in the mind before the first vote is cast. Let people begin thinking about life after Bush, and Bush recedes in the rear view mirror, losing power and moving the debate onto the next phase.

This diary then goes on to support MaCain as the placeholder, which doesn't work for me, but the frame is very important:

We need to start people talking about who should serve out the last 12-18 months of Bush's Presidency.

Who will be president after Bush ?

Then I found another good diary on Impeachment......

Here is one possibility for how a successful change in leadership might occur. We need seventeen Republican senators and only a few (if any) congresspersons:

Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid arrange a little meeting with John McCain. They offer him an interim presidency to support impeachment and removal for Gonzales, Cheney, and Bush. McCain may be willing to do this because - I suspect - he is still a little pissed with the Bushies for insulting him, his wife, and his adopted children during the 2000 primaries.
John McCain has a good deal of political clout with Republican Senators. He arranges a little backroom brokering behind closed doors with Republicans and gets the necessary seventeen.
Nancy Pelosi places in three parallel articles of impeachment against Attorney General Gonzalez, Vice President Cheney, and President Bush. She next immediately steps down as Speaker of the House temporarily. John McCain is handed the Speakership duties pro-tempe. Note that the role of Speaker of the House can be assigned to any citizen, regardless of House membership.
The new Speaker places articles of impeachment on the agenda and stifles all debate, instead forcing a voice vote to immediately Impeach all three. Without a roll call, votes are not recorded - so Republicans aren't on the record.
Senate immediately takes up the trial and convicts on the same day.
John McCain is sworn into office as President of the United States. He chooses a vice president of his liking.
Nancy Pelosi returns as Speaker of the House.
Bad news: John McCain - like Gerald Ford - will have the opportunity to pardon. *shrug* I'm not a vindictive prick, I just want these assholes out of office. Fine.
'08: we fight it out on the election battlefield, just like every other presidential election year.
No debates. No bullshit. No media storm before it happens. Just walk in, do the deed, and get the fuck off the house and senate floor in one day flat. Don't let them prepare. Don't give the Bushies one inkling of the shitstorm coming their way. Do it all backroom and then stick the knife in once you've got the votes. Gonzales, Bush, and Cheney would be then out of office without recourse. Plus, the Democrats would have not used impeachment for partisan gain.

Again a fan of McCain, I would still opt for Lugar, though.

So back to Gonzo, put the SOB out to pasture, impeach and remove before the recess, do it the deed quick and clean. There is likely considerable bipartisian support at this very moment to make it happen. Since there is a split on impeachment in the democratic party, removing Gonzo sets an example on getting the job done without the drawnout process that would be harmful. No AG has ever been removed from office, it makes history, and I am sure a majority of the country would support removal, if done with republicans in support.

SO heres the frame:

We are nearing the time that people need to discuss who will be selected as a placeholder president.

Who will be president after Bush ?

Senator Lugar . . . former Senator Danforth ?

[Ian David]

1. Arlen Specter or Joe LIEberman.

It would be career suicide for either of them.

[FogerRox]

2. In my opinion the placeholder president must be a republican.

Joe is done anyway, ya know.. ?

The blowback on elevating a DEM to the WHite House, to me, is a deal breaker.

[Ian David]

9. RON PAUL!!! RON PAUL!!

RON PAUL '07

[autorank]

3. Good question! Not one single Iraq war supporter.

Not McCain, can you imagine. That guy can't even deep a campaign staff (and it didn't used to be
that way with him).

Not Powell. He's complicit.

These diaries are interesting but they miss a key point - things are so bad, we need to select the
very best president. If we're lucky enough to get rid of these guys, it won't really matter to the
people what party the president and vice president come from. it won't be viewed as a coup either.
If the people support impeachment, that's it; they support getting rid of *.

[FogerRox]

5. hey brother Autorank, Sup

Though I think you place more value on this:

" things are so bad, we need to select the
very best president. If we're lucky enough to get rid of these guys, it won't really matter to the
people what party the president and vice president come from. it won't be viewed as a coup either.
If the people support impeachment, that's it; they support getting rid of *"

.......than I do. You and I know this as a truth, but IMHO there is a significant minority who can be our allies, but they are 2 or more years behind on the facts. They will see DEMs elevating a repub to the WH as a non partisian act, and I think that buys goodwill with .. maybe 20% of voters. Before the '08 elections.

But Gonzo has to go before the recess, or consider no recess. Its an opportunity to excersise some atrophied DEM muscle

[autorank]

7. No more compromises with these Republicans

You're right about the 2 years behind...we're dealing with election thieves, war mongers, death
merchants. What a crew. Maybe we'll find a lite version to step in, NOT;)

Lets make Al Gore president. He won! No arguments about that.

[FogerRox]

8. Gore 44, and it has a good beat,,

[FogerRox]

12. I would at least talk to a republican, if they want to seriously talk about removing Bush & Cheney

That means a republican Senator who will talk about voting to remove Bush & Cheney from office. And if offering a repub place holder in the WH gets the attention of a republican sentor, and he/she is willing to have an honest talk about caning the cabal, then I think we should listen.

67 votes is what I want.

My question to the republican senators is what will it take for you to talk about impeachment and removal seriously?

[jaysunb]

4. Danforth...

but why run away from the Constitutional process. :shrug:

[FogerRox]

6. What ? are you talking about ?

Carl Albert was speaker in 74, he did not end up as president......

Nothing in the Constitution about not impeaching and removing a sitting pres and the VP. Impeachment was considered so important it is mentioned 3 times.

[Ian David]

10. RON PAUL!!! RON PAUL!!

Ron Paul '07

Ron Paul '07

Ron Paul '07

[FogerRox]

11. That would be interesting

[illinoisprogressive]

13. Tonight I saw some pundits advising the dems to not do any impeaching or else

The media has their henchmen advising democrats not to impeach because it will really damage them and they need to just concentrate on legislating and not so much on investigating.
They are being undermined. They are being pumped with misinformation that they will destroy the party if they mess around with impeaching anyone.