The Torture Issue Alone Is Sufficient To Justify Impeachment Of Bush,
Cheney, and Rumsfeld - for "conspiracy to commit torture," in direct
violation of existing United States law.

by Rev. Bill McGinnis, Director - LoveAllPeople.org

Note: An MP3 "speaking- voice" version of this message is located at
http://www.text-to-speech.org/tortureissuealone.mp3, so you can listen
to this message as you read it here in print.

HTML version of this document is located at
http://www.loveallpeople.org/tortureissuealone.html



The torture issue alone is sufficient to justify the impeachment of
Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld for "conspiracy to commit torture," in
direct violation of existing United States law.

The exact words of the United States Code, Title 18, Sections 2340,
2340A, and 2340B are shown below. As you read these words and consider
the pictures and other public evidence from Abu Ghraib and other
prisons, you will see: first, that numerous United States Military
personnel did commit the crime of torture (as defined below), on a
systematic and widespread scale, not confined to the rogue actions of a
few individuals; second, that the very highest levels of the Bush
Administration, including the President himself, must have planned
and/or authorized these activities, and thus are guilty of the high
crime of "conspiracy to commit torture," an impeachable offense.

Further, you will see that the entire chain of command - starting from
the Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld level, then going down through the military
organizations and the CIA, down to the individual torturers - must have
also been members of this conspiracy to commit torture, to the extent
that they worked together to make it happen.

Here are the words of the Law . . .

UNITED STATES CODE - TITLE 18
Section 2340. Definitions

As used in this chapter -
(1) ''torture'' means an act committed by a person acting under the
color of law specifically intended to inflict severe physical or mental
pain or suffering (other than pain or suffering incidental to lawful
sanctions) upon another person within his custody or physical control;
(2) ''severe mental pain or suffering'' means the prolonged mental harm
caused by or resulting from -
(A) the intentional infliction or threatened infliction of severe
physical pain or suffering;
(B) the administration or application, or threatened administration or
application, of mind-altering substances or other procedures calculated
to disrupt profoundly the senses or the personality;
(C) the threat of imminent death; or
(D) the threat that another person will imminently be subjected to
death, severe physical pain or suffering, or the administration or
application of mind-altering substances or other procedures calculated
to disrupt profoundly the senses or personality; and
(3) ''United States'' includes all areas under the jurisdiction of the
United States including any of the places described in sections 5 and 7
of this title and section 46501(2) of title 49.

Section 2340A. Torture

(a) Offense. - Whoever outside the United States commits or attempts to
commit torture shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more
than 20 years, or both, and if death results to any person from conduct
prohibited by this subsection, shall be punished by death or imprisoned
for any term of years or for life.

(b) Jurisdiction. - There is jurisdiction over the activity prohibited
in subsection (a) if -
(1) the alleged offender is a national of the United States; or
(2) the alleged offender is present in the United States, irrespective
of the nationality of the victim or alleged offender.

(c) Conspiracy. - A person who conspires to commit an offense under
this section shall be subject to the same penalties (other than the
penalty of death) as the penalties prescribed for the offense, the
commission of which was the object of the conspiracy.

Section 2340B. Exclusive remedies

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as precluding the
application of State or local laws on the same subject, nor shall
anything in this chapter be construed as creating any substantive or
procedural right enforceable by law by any party in any civil
proceeding.

Source: United States Code, as found at
http://www.findlaw.com/casecode/uscode.html/ and other locations.

As we now can see, we have here clear and provable grounds to impeach
and remove from office the President, the Vice-President, the Secretary
Of Defense, and perhaps dozens of other Federal officials.

There are also other anti-torture laws which the United States is
currently breaking, because of Bush's policies, and some of these
surely could provide other grounds for impeachment of Bush and Cheney.
But the law shown above seems to provide the clearest and most obvious
grounds, because of its precise definition of torture and its specific
prohibition of conspiracy to commit torture. An excellent summary of
all United States and International Laws against torture is located at
http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2004/05/24/usint8614.htm As you read
these laws, you will see for yourself how disgustingly far the Bush
Administration has pulled us away from the civilized norms of human
behavior.

After Bush and Cheney are impeached and removed from office, the
Speaker of The House Of representatives - at that time - is next in
line to become President, under existing U. S. law. (See
http://bensguide.gpo.gov/9-12/government/national/succession.html) So
prior to the actual removals from office, the House could select
whomever it chooses to become Speaker. It is not Constitutionally
required that the Speaker of the House be a Member of the House. So the
House could elect whomever it chooses to become Speaker, who would then
become President after Bush and Cheney are removed.


Blessings to you. May God help us all. And may God bless America!

Rev. Bill McGinnis, Director - LoveAllPeople.org
http://www.LoveAllPeople.org
and http://www.InternetchurchOfChrist.org


HTML version of this document is located at
http://www.loveallpeople.org/tortureissuealone.html