Pelosi wrong on impeachment

In an interview with 60 minutes, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said that impeachment of Bush is off the table if Dems win big in November. She thinks the Republicans would "love the waste of time" of impeachment proceedings.

Waste of time? Bringing a criminal to justice is a waste of time? So once again, from my own party, politics trumps what's right. Pelosi's logic is clear enough. Voters are tired of partisan bickering and may not vote Democratic if they think the next two years will be taken up with impeachment hearings instead of the peoples' work. Is this true? Well, we have one example in recent history from which to draw.

Let's look at the impeachment of Bill Clinton: a ridiculously trivial offense of playing "where's the cigar?" shameless, hyperbolic charges by Congress; proceedings at odds with public opinion; a monumental waste of time and money that accomplished nothing. So it really hurt the Republicans. Right? Wrong. One year later, admittedly with help from the Supreme Court, Bush walked into the White house with both houses of Congress in his back pocket.

Then there is the highly irritating fact that George W. Bush has never been held accountable for anything in his life. Not for the wild partying of a privileged brat, not for using his family's position to duck going to Vietnam and getting him into Yale, not for dereliction of duty in the service, not for a variety of bad business deals, nothing. And now, with Pelosi's help, he's not going to be held accountable for purposefully attacking the Constitution and claiming powers that are not his to claim.

There is no doubt in my mind that Bush would be found guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors if impeached, and I think he knows that, too. There have been a number of signs recently that Bush, with the help of his family, is preparing for the eventuality of impeachment or jail time after his presidency is over. One-way tickets to Paraguay, please.

Pelosi should not have made such a definitive statement about impeachment. Who knows what administration crimes will be uncovered if there are real hearings in Congress?

Would somebody somewhere please hold George Bush accountable?