"Bush Authorizes New Covert Action Against Iran"

"The CIA has received secret presidential approval to mount a covert "black" operation to destabilize the Iranian government, current and former officials in the intelligence community tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com."

Full article: ABC News

Note that this story could very well be disinformation.

The last time we authorized "covert operations" in Iran, we overthrew a democratically elected man by the name of Dr. Mohammed Mossadeq, who was anti-communist and pro-western. Mossadeq hit bump, though, when he decided to nationalize the oil fields, which angered British Petroleum to no end. BP influenced the CIA and British Intelligence to take Mossadeq out. The CIA then installed the Shah, a brutal dictator. The Shah was later overthrow by the current Iranian government.

Let's get this show on the road!

Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution

"The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."

The procedure:
Impeachment resolutions, written by members of the House, are turned over to the House Judiciary Committee which then decides the validity of the resolution, the claims within and whether the claims merit a referral to the House for a formal vote.

The House then votes on whether to hold formal impeachment hearings, a simple majority is required to proceed.

If a majority approves the measure, the House Judiciary Committee conducts and investigation to determine if enough evidence is available to warrant indictment of the President. Formal articles of impeachment are drafted, including the specific charges that are supported by evidence. The Committee must vote on each article of impeachment in order for them to be sent to the House floor.

The House votes on whether a trial in the Senate is necessary, this requires a simple majority.

If a majority approves the articles of impeachment a trial is prepared in the Senate with special members of the House acting as prosecutors.

With the Chief Justice presiding, a formal trial is held in the Senate. The President may be represented by any person he wishes. The President's presence is not required for the proceedings.

The trial may be held on the Senate floor or in a Senate Committee, which would report all matters to the Senate floor.

The trial is held, witnesses are examined and cross-examined, all questions from Senators are submitted in writing.

After the evidence and arguments are heard, the Senate deliberates in private and finally holds a public vote on whether to convict or acquit the President. A 2/3 majority is necessary for a conviction.

Iran Captures British Soldiers

Interesting news from the Persian Gulf today as Iranian military forces have captured fifteen British soldiers at gunpoint. The United Kingdom's ministry of defence has confirmed this, saying a Iranian naval vessel captured the soldiers.

The UK government is currently demanding the immediate release of the soldiers and their equipment. They also assert that the soldiers were performing routine military patrols within Iraqi waters and that the Iranian actions were unlawful.

The soldiers were captured at 10:30 AM local time when they boarded a boat they believed was smuggling automobiles. The soldiers are currently being held along the Shatt al-Arab waterway according to Helicopter reports. Naval authorities are currently working on a diplomatic solution to the situation.

This is not the first time Iranian forces have captured British soldiers, the last time this occurred was in 2004, those soldiers were eventually returned but not before being forced to 'apologize' on Iranian television.

BBB News
Al Jazeera
Washington Post

Thousands Protest Iraq War

Thousands of people gathered in Washington D.C. this week for an organized protest against President Bush's plan to send more soldiers to Iraq. Groups of people spanning all ethnic, age and social groups all made their voices heard as the Senate was discussing the proposal to send more soldiers overseas.

Some of the protesters were seasoned veterans of the Vietnam War era, but many were raw recruits to the anti-war effort. They all shared one thing in common, they do not want an escalation or increase of soldiers in Iraq.

Related Article: Washington Post

Not with 20,000, not with 100,000.

The idea that an increase in numbers will solve this Iraqi mess fails all tests of logic. An insurgency cannot be broken, it is tempered like steel and is part of the mindset of the people in the region. They see a foreign power come in and remove their government, they see thousands of people die, their electricity doesn't work, their homes are rubble, no water and lack of food; they look at this situation and blame it on the most obvious and immediate group, the occupying power. Regardless of our original intentions, we have severely screwed up the country of Iraq, our cowboy attitude and lack of foresight has left the Iraqi people worse off that they were half a decade ago. Yet our President, our leader thinks he can solve this by sending in more people with machine guns? Sure, maybe in a John Wayne move, but this is the real world and regional politics and mindsets do not change on a whim. They did not greet us as liberators at the start of the war, they will not welcome another surge.