Be polite, concise, informative, and passionate. Be like the author of the following letter -- even if she did just copy and paste our press release ;-)
Copyright 2005 MediaNews Group, Inc. and New England Newspaper Group Inc.
The Berkshire Eagle (Pittsfield, Massachusetts)
June 1, 2005 Wednesday
SECTION: LETTERS
LENGTH: 412 words
HEADLINE: Learn the case for impeachment
BODY:
To the Editor of THE EAGLE:-
A coalition of veterans' groups, peace groups, and political activist groups has announced a campaign to urge the U.S. Congress to launch a formal investigation into whether President Bush has committed impeachable offenses in connection with the Iraq war. The campaign focuses on evidence that recently emerged in a British memo containing minutes of a secret July 2002 meeting with Prime Minister Tony Blair and his top national security officials.
John Bonifaz, a Boston attorney specializing in constitutional litigation, sent a memo to Congressman John Conyers of Michigan, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, urging him to introduce a Resolution of Inquiry directing the House Judiciary Committee to launch a formal investigation into whether sufficient grounds exist for the House to impeach President Bush.
Bonifaz's memo, made available at www.AfterDowningStreet.org [1], begins: "The recent release of the Downing Street Memo provides new and compelling evidence that the president of the United States has been actively engaged in a conspiracy to deceive and mislead the United States Congress and the American people about the basis for going to war against Iraq. If true, such conduct constitutes a High Crime under Article II, Section 4 of the United States Constitution."
In February and March 2003, Bonifaz served as lead counsel for a coalition of U.S. soldiers, parents of soldiers, and members of Congress [led by Reps. Conyers, Jr. and Dennis Kucinich] in a federal lawsuit challenging President Bush's authority to wage war against Iraq absent a congressional declaration of war or equivalent action. Bonifaz is the author of "Warrior-King: The Case for Impeaching George W. Bush" [NationBooks, 2004, which chronicles that case and its meaning for the Constitution.
The organizations forming the AfterDowningStreet.org coalition include: Global Exchange, Gold Star Families for Peace, Democrats.com, Veterans for Peace, Code Pink, Progressive Democrats of America, and Democracy Rising. These organizations will be urging their members to contact their representatives to urge support of a Resolution of Inquiry.
For more information, see www.AfterDowningStreet.org [1], or contact: Democrats.com, President Bob Fertik, 718-424-7772, or Washington director David Swanson, 202-329-7847.
DEBORAH LUSIGNAN
Adams, May 27, 2005
The writer is a member of Progressive Democrats of America.