Sheehan considers run against Pelosi

[therealjohng]

CRAWFORD, Texas - Cindy Sheehan, the soldier's mother who galvanized the anti-war movement, said Sunday that she plans to run against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi unless she introduces articles of impeachment against President Bush in the next two weeks.

Sheehan said she will run against the San Francisco Democrat in 2008 as an independent if Pelosi does not seek by July 23 to impeach Bush. That's when Sheehan and her supporters are to arrive in Washington, D.C., after a 13-day caravan and walking tour starting next week from the group's war protest site near Bush's Crawford ranch.

"Democrats and Americans feel betrayed by the Democratic leadership," Sheehan told The Associated Press. "We hired them to bring an end to the war. I'm not too far from San Francisco, so it wouldn't be too big of a move for me. I would give her a run for her money."

Messages left with Pelosi's staff were not immediately returned.

She plans her official candidacy announcement Tuesday. Sunday wrapped up what is expected to be her final weekend at the 5-acre Crawford lot that she sold to California radio talk show host Bree Walker, who plans to keep it open to protesters.

Sheehan announced in late May that she was leaving the anti-war movement. She said that she felt her efforts had been in vain and that she had endured smear tactics and hatred from the left, as well as the right. She said she wanted to change course.

She first came to Crawford in August 2005 during a Bush vacation, demanding to talk to him about the war that killed her son Casey in 2004. She became the face of the anti-war movement during her 26-day roadside vigil, which was joined by thousands. But it also drew counterprotests by Bush supporters, many who said she was hurting troop morale.

Sheehan, who has never held political office, recently said that she was leaving the Democratic Party because it "caved" in to the president. Last week, she announced her caravan to Washington, an undertaking she calls the "people's accountability movement."

"I didn't expect to be back so soon, but the focus is different than it was before," Sheehan said Sunday. "Instead of talking and making accusations, we're going into communities and talking to the people who've been hurt by the Bush regime. We're finding out how we can help people."

Sheehan, who will turn 50 on Tuesday, said Bush should be impeached because she believes he misled the public about the reasons for going to war, violated the Geneva Convention by torturing detainees, and crossed the line by commuting the prison sentence of former vice presidential aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. She said other grounds for impeachment are the domestic spying program and the "inadequate and tragic" response to Hurricane Katrina.

Libby was convicted of lying and obstructing justice in an investigation into the leak of a CIA officer's identity.

Sheehan said she hopes Pelosi files the articles of impeachment so Sheehan can move onto her next projects, including overseas trips for humanitarian work. But if not, Sheehan said she is ready to run for office.

"I'm doing it to encourage other people to run against Congress members who aren't doing their jobs, who are beholden to special interests," Sheehan said. "She (Pelosi) let the people down who worked hard to put Democrats back in power, who we thought were our hope for change."

Pelosi was elected to the House in 1987 and became the first female speaker in January.

Sheehan said she lives in a Sacramento suburb but declined to disclose which city, citing safety reasons. The area is outside Pelosi's district, but according to documents on the California secretary of state's Web site, there are no residency requirements for congressional members.

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Interesting.

[Scarfather]

Dumbass.

[The Postmaster General]

Good. I'm glad someone is showing a bit of activism. No doubt, she stands no chance in hell, but it will at least rock things a little bit, and maybe get the right people to take notice. Regardless of her overall struggles, she does have a lot of loud supporters.

[shoe1985]

Originally posted by BubbaStrangelove
Good. I'm glad someone is showing a bit of activism. No doubt, she stands no chance in hell, but it will at least rock things a little bit, and maybe get the right people to take notice. Regardless of her overall struggles, she does have a lot of loud supporters.

Honestly, I wouldn't be shocked if she was to win. I know in my state we are sick of these people that make promises and don't keep them. We elected many new people expected changes, and it is the same old thing. The rich are making off better than ever.

[The Postmaster General]

Originally posted by shoe1985
Honestly, I wouldn't be shocked if she was to win. I know in my state we are sick of these people that make promises and don't keep them. We elected many new people expected changes, and it is the same old thing. The rich are making off better than ever.


I was initially thinking about the cost of running a campaign, but after thinking about it a tab more, I wonder if she'll get support from the Hollywood community, funding-wise.

[shoe1985]

Originally posted by BubbaStrangelove
I was initially thinking about the cost of running a campaign, but after thinking about it a tab more, I wonder if she'll get support from the Hollywood community, funding-wise.

I don't believe she will win, but she will garner a lot of support. She could win though. She is somewhat of a hero to some. I don't know enough about her to say she should or shouldn't run. One thing many people don't have that run for office is that big issue. She has an issue. Now what else?

[Cyclonus]

This could be...interesting, to say the least. Unfortunately she has no experience in public office, and little chance of winning. Still, she could use this as a forum to draw more attention to her cause (most likely her real intent).

[bigred760]

:rolleyes: Sigh.

I'm really tired of this woman.

Now she's threatening the Democrats. This is nothing but another publicity stunt. She might run, but I don't think she stands a chance in hell.

I wish she would just go away.

[QUENTIN]

Originally posted by bigred760
:rolleyes: Sigh.

I'm really tired of this woman.

Now she's threatening the Democrats. This is nothing but another publicity stunt. She might run, but I don't think she stands a chance in hell.

I wish she would just go away.

Her son died in a needless, illegal war that the American public was outright lied to about for years. That war still rages on and continues to claim many lives every day. You think you could or should "just go away" from that?

I've had the chance to hear Cindy (and the Gold Star families and anti-war soldiers who've served in Iraq) speak twice now and I got to speak with her one-on-one when she demonstrated at my school. She isn't especially well-spoken, she really is just a normal mom who realized she lost her son over some bastard's selfish and greedy plan. Her goal of putting an end to that plan is noble and she's done a lot to rally people and get them to actually take action in an effort to end this war. She is now pissed, as are so many Americans, that the democrats completely let down the majority who voted them into power and ignored the mandate to end this war by any means necessary. So she's talking about running to again bring ending the war to the forefront of the political discussion and to threaten those who promised to end the war then cowtowed to Bush and his childish, stubborn in the face of all logic, and tragic behavior.

She's trying to enact positive change for our country and the world, I don't get the animosity against her unless the Fox News/White House smear machine is just that effective.

[Brando @$$ Fat]

I wouldn't mind watching Pelosi go. In the last couple of months I've become just as sick of Democrats as I have Republicans. Harry Reid is the shittiest Senate Majority Leader ever and Nancy Pelosi is a really shitty Speaker of the House. They don't like doing anything productive, they just like having their little polls to try and prove to the president how unpopular the war is. They all start whining when Bush vetoes their timetable for withdrawl acting like it isn't executive privilege and then they just make more noise. That's all they've been doing for the last six months, making noise. What a shitty excuse for a Congress. We have a chance to do some incredible things and all we've been getting from the Congress is crap. That one bill over whether Alberto Gonzalez was doing a good job or not? Are they fucking serious? If that is the kind of shit they feel is necessary to discuss then maybe we do need to vote them out of Congress. If I ever move there, Sheehan will get my vote.

That's why I'm glad they gave Tom Daschle the thumbs down in South Dakota. Even though they probably did it because he wasn't conservative enough, I have not problem watching people who blindly vote for war bills just so they maintain their popularity get booted out of office.

I know this is also off-topic, but I recently saw Democrats on CNN defending Clinton's 140 pardons on his last day in office, saying they weren't as bad as Bush commuting Libby's sentence. Those are the people I'm sick of. The pathetic partisan apologists who can't for one moment think outside of the goddamn box and realize that not everything their party leaders do is ethical or moral.

[shoe1985]

Originally posted by Brando @$$ Fat
I wouldn't mind watching Pelosi go. In the last couple of months I've become just as sick of Democrats as I have Republicans. Harry Reid is the shittiest Senate Majority Leader ever and Nancy Pelosi is a really shitty Speaker of the House. They don't like doing anything productive, they just like having their little polls to try and prove to the president how unpopular the war is. They all start whining when Bush vetoes their timetable for withdrawl acting like it isn't executive privilege and then they just make more noise. That's all they've been doing for the last six months, making noise. What a shitty excuse for a Congress. We have a chance to do some incredible things and all we've been getting from the Congress is crap. That one bill over whether Alberto Gonzalez was doing a good job or not? Are they fucking serious? If that is the kind of shit they feel is necessary to discuss then maybe we do need to vote them out of Congress. If I ever move there, Sheehan will get my vote.

That's why I'm glad they gave Tom Daschle the thumbs down in South Dakota. Even though they probably did it because he wasn't conservative enough, I have not problem watching people who blindly vote for war bills just so they maintain their popularity get booted out of office.

I know this is also off-topic, but I recently saw Democrats on CNN defending Clinton's 140 pardons on his last day in office, saying they weren't as bad as Bush commuting Libby's sentence. Those are the people I'm sick of. The pathetic partisan apologists who can't for one moment think outside of the goddamn box and realize that not everything their party leaders do is ethical or moral.


Brando @$$ Fat, perfect post. I feel exactly the same way. In Pa, you should see the roads we travel on. They are now saying we have a massive surplus, yet, they are doing nothing with the money, and can't even get a spending bill done.

I thought with new blood in the congress we would see some nice changes, yet it is all bickering about how one person is doing a terrible job. They need to stop and make positive changes. There is more going on in the USA then the war. Maybe we need to spend more time on making quality jobs instead of putting in more minimum wage jobs.

[therealjohng]

Originally posted by Brando @$$ Fat
That's why I'm glad they gave Tom Daschle the thumbs down in South Dakota. Even though they probably did it because he wasn't conservative enough



We voted him out because he was a politician that would make promises for us here in the state then go and stay in Washington and try to get his ass on the news every night. People here got sick of him. The only thing is, I don't know if John Thune is doing a better job.

*End of discussion on South Dakota politics in this thread*

[shoe1985]

I can't say every person we put in has done a poor job. Chris Carney is working very hard for PA. He is trying to make change. Others like Bob Casey Jr. are doing squat. He is not getting my vote next time.

[Brando @$$ Fat]

I think Lindsay Graham has done a good job even though I strongly disagree with most of his policies. He's one of the hardest working people in the Senate. The funniest thing, though, is that he's obviously a homosexual and the dumb S.C. voters can't even tell. Either that, or they just prefer to be naive. Our other senator Jim DeMint is a fucking moron. During his campaign he said that he didn't believe single mothers should be allowed to teach.

South Carolina voters are really stupid. I mean REALLY fucking stupid. It's pretty much impossible to lose if you're a Republican. Our last governor was a Democrat but only because the Republican incumbent didn't want the Confederate flag on Statehouse grounds, so he lost. I think he ended up getting the Kennedy Profiles in Courage Award, but I'm sure the voters down here aren't impressed 'cause they don't care for no liberal awards show.

Yeah, off-topic but it makes for interesting conversation.

[Tayzlor]

She annoys me personally but I'm with Bubba here that her activism and spirit is exhilirating when so many other drastically antiwar are content to hold up the occasional sign at an haphazardly arranged rally that really only exists so they can protest.

What throws me off her is that she only started this crusade once her son died. I mean, is their like neighbor testimony where they wax on her antiwar tendencies even while it was raging or did she only begin dissenting when her little darling was shot.

[The Postmaster General]

Originally posted by Tayzlor
What throws me off her is that she only started this crusade once her son died. I mean, is their like neighbor testimony where they wax on her antiwar tendencies even while it was raging or did she only begin dissenting when her little darling was shot.


I totally get where you are coming from, and think that just maybe parents want to assume their adult child isn't being exploited. Plus, for a lot of people, their opinion on the war changed over time. Considering that both she might be wishing positive outcomes for her kid, and that new facts have surfaced over the years, even months - the time table of her actions doesn't bother me.

Or, it could be a case along the lines of a child working for a company, and you feeling that the child was killed on the job because of bad policies. Maybe you didn't pay attention to those policies as much before. Afterwards though, you dig deeper and feel that your kid died because of mismanagement. It might be considered a bit weak to just say nothing.