Sit-in at Congressman Hinchey’s Kingston office

Impeachment is divisive issue for the left

By FRITZ MAYER

KINGSTON, NY — A group of five peace activists staged a short sit-in at Congressman Maurice Hinchey’s office on August 25. Police were called, but no arrests were made. The protesters left after Hinchey agreed to meet with them again on September 21.

One of the demonstrators, Margaret Human, a member of the Green Party who is running for a council seat in the Town of New Paltz, said the ad-hoc group staged the sit-in because they felt that Hinchey’s position on impeachment was “intransigent.” She said, “We think it’s very wrong; he has a constitutional responsibility to pursue impeachment.”

The sit-in followed a meeting with a group of about 75 activists at an office building a few blocks away from Hinchey’s office. At the meeting, several demonstrators urged Hinchey to sign on to to a bill in the House, introduced by Congressman Dennis Kucinich in April, calling for the impeachment of Vice President Dick Cheney.

Hinchey has introduced legislation calling for censure of the president and vice president, which would formally admonish them for various actions, including misleading the American people about the need for the war in Iraq.

Hinchey, who has been among the fiercest critics of the war and other policies of the administration, repeated his position that impeachment at this time has no chance of passing and therefore is politically futile. His remarks, at times, were greeted with catcalls and boos from a few members of the group. Others, however, who have a good deal of respect for Hinchey because of his position on many issues, tried to silence the catcalls to allow him to be heard.

Liz Bucar, a member of Sullivan Peace and Justice who was at the meeting, wrote and emailed peace groups in Orange and Sullivan counties in New York and Wayne County in Pennsylvania and said that she was distressed by some of what she saw. She wrote, “I think we have to pay serious heed when someone like Maurice Hinchey says he’s concerned that signing onto Kucinich’s resolution will damage our efforts to rescue and protect this nation. More importantly, we don’t have time to waste on targeting our friends.”

The incident is not the first time peace activists have clashed with an anti-war politician.

On July 23, impeachment activists staged a sit-in at the offices of Congressman John Conyers. Conyers, who is now chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, the committee in which impeachment proceedings would start, and who has been a very vocal critic of the war and the Bush Administration, has likewise refused to sign on to the impeachment resolution.

Conyers told the group that impeachment isn’t going to happen “because we don’t have the votes.” When the activists refused to leave Conyer’s office, at Conyer’s request, capital police arrested 48 of the demonstrators.