Home

Palisades Democrats Grill Waxman on Iraq, Iran, and Impeachment

Submitted by davidswanson on Mon, 2007-01-29 10:38.

By Marcy Winograd

Addressing a crowd of 200 at a Palisades Democratic

Club meeting in Los Angeles Sunday, Congressman

Henry Waxman said he opposes the US occupation of Iraq

but may continue to fund it because "I don't want to make

any promises before I see what the (funding) proposal will be."

Greeted by grassroots Democrats holding a

banner that read "Liberals do not fund occupation,"

Waxman acknowledged there were members of the

audience who would like to see him support bills

calling for the immediate withdrawal of troops, but

said he was not sure bringing the troops home now was the

answer.

The House of Representatives is expected to vote on another 150-billion

dollar Iraq supplemental appropriations bill in February or

March. Though Waxman voted for the 2002 Iraq War Authorization,

he voted against a supplemental funding bill last year.

Waxman, now Chair of the Government Reform

Committee, told the standing-room only

crowd he opposes the Bush troop

escalation and wants to conduct vigorous investigations

into the 8-billion US dollars missing in Iraq, but said he is not

convinced it is time to use the power of the purse to end

the war or even co-sponsor legislation that would bring the

troops home within six months. Waxman said a civil war could

develop when US troops leave Iraq. "But there already is a civil war,"

said one audience member, whose objection went

unanswered.

Waxman, who has built a reputation as a lone ranger

investigator, promised he would probe the Bush administration's

abuse of power and taxpayer money, as well as the outing

of a CIA agent and wrongdoing by Cheney's energy task force.

Rather than issuing subpoenas first, however,

he would request top administration officials

testify voluntarily. "People think when I walk around I have a

subpoena in every pocket," said the lawmaker who made

headlines when he investigated the awarding of no-bid contracts

to Halliburton.

On the subject of impeachment, Waxman said, "I do not want

to impeach the President," arguing Congress should get on

with its agenda, and the Democrat-controlled

Congress should behave differently than

the Republican-controlled Congress during former President Bill

Clinton's presidency. "What about the US Constitution?" shouted one

delegate to the state Democratic Party, outraged that Waxman

would draw a parallel between impeachment proceedings based

on a sex scandal and impeachment efforts based on high crimes

involving unilateral war and suspension of constitutional rights.

Ultimately, Waxman said it would be up to Congressman John Conyers,

Chair of the Judiciary Committee, to launch impeachment proceedings.

Asked if he would oppose US military use of Israel as a proxy to

bomb or invade Iran, Waxman said he opposed a war

against Iran, though added, "If you want to lose sleep, think of a

nuclear-armed Iran." The Congressman said he favored economic

sanctions over the use of force, referencing the enormous impact

of world economic sanctions against the apartheid government of

South Africa.

Going forward, Waxman said he hoped to concentrate on

legislation that would address the threat of global warming and

establish a single-payer health care plan. Some members of

the audience stood to give him a standing ovation.

Contact Representative Waxman:

http://www.henrywaxman.house.gov/contact.htm

In Washington, D.C.
2204 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
(202) 225-3976 (phone)
(202) 225-4099 (fax)

In Los Angeles
8436 West Third Street, Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(323) 651-1040 (phone)
(818) 878-7400 (phone)
(310) 652-3095 (phone)
(323) 655-0502 (fax)

»