Impeachment Talk Is Back

Irons correctly asserts that there is now sufficient evidence to reasonably believe that President Reagan has violated his constitutional oath to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed,” and therefore it is not too early to talk about his impeachment.

The total contempt shown by Reagan and his Administration for the Constitution and the sacred principle of the rule of law far surpasses the impeachable conduct of Richard Nixon.

By supporting the contras and waging its dirty little war against the elected government of Nicaragua, by invading Grenada and wantonly shelling Arab villages in Lebanon with the battleship New Jersey’s 16-inch guns, by attacking civilian targets in Libya and attempting to murder its head of state, and by selling arms to Iran in exchange for hostages and diverting the profits to the contras, the Reagan Administration has thumbed its nose at the World Court, violated international law, defied Congress, and usurped the war-making power.

It has lied repeatedly to the American public, and has arguably violated a whole host of domestic laws, including the Boland Amendment, the Neutrality Act, the Hughes-Ryan Amendment of 1974, the Intelligence Oversight Act of 1980, the Intelligence Authorization Act and the Arms Export Control Act, to name a few.

As a result of this official misconduct, the Contadora peace initiative in Central America has been blocked, our credibility as a peace-loving and law-abiding nation has been damaged, the U.S. anti-terrorism policy is in complete disarray, our influence in the volatile Middle East has been diminished, and our constitutional system of checks and balances, particularly in the area of foreign policy, has been subverted.

I am in complete agreement with the former attorney general of the United States, Ramsey Clark, who stated last year that “Reagan’s subversion of truth and the rule of law is the greatest threat facing the American people and indeed the world . . . If we care for the truth and for who we are, and if we want to restore the integrity of our constitutional system, we must demand the impeachment and trial of Ronald Reagan.”

WILLIAM BOTHAMLEY

San Diego