The Republican Party of South Dakota approved a resolution over the weekend calling for the impeachment of President Obama, citing multiple violations of his oath of office to uphold the U.S. Constitution and faithfully execute the laws passed by Congress. The measure, which was narrowly accepted by delegates at the state GOP convention on Saturday, comes amid a growing national movement to remove Obama from power — or at least take urgent measures to rein in the lawlessness. Supporters of the effort across America celebrated the move as an important milestone in restoring accountability and constitutional government.
The establishment has largely dismissed the historic resolution as “symbolic.” With the growing stench of scandal swirling around the administration, though, supporters of the resolution said the time has come to hold Obama accountable. Among other alleged crimes, misdemeanors, and oath violations cited in the measure were: The unlawful release of five Taliban leaders in exchange for U.S. soldier Bowe Bergdahl, Obama’s proven “willful” lie about individuals being allowed to keep their health insurance under ObamaCare, and the avalanche of recent executive decrees on “climate change” to unilaterally impose energy rationing on America.
“The president has ordered Federal Agencies to enact rules (laws) that threaten the security of the people of this great nation (EPA regulations) bypassing Congress and usurping its authority,” the resolution states. “The president has abused his executive privilege usurping his authority as decided by numerous federal courts…. The Constitution and Declaration of Independence are very clear on the authority of the President and the Federal Government, and when they violate their oath it is the right, it is the duty of the American people to act.”
The measure starts off by pointing out that “Barack Hussein Obama has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States and protect it from all enemies both foreign and domestic.” Instead of adhering to that sacred oath, however, the president has violated it “in numerous ways,” most recently by releasing “five terrorists” without consulting Congress as required by law, it continues. “America was designed as a Lex Rex (the law is king) rather than a Rex Lex (The King is the law) system of government,” the measure says. “It is a government of the people, by the people and for the people.”
State GOP convention delegates voted 191 to 176 in favor of the Tea Party-backed measure. Now that the resolution has been approved, the South Dakota Republican Party is apparently the first state GOP to go on the record calling for the House of Representatives to initiate impeachment proceedings. Whether South Dakota’s elected Republicans in Congress will act, though, remains to be seen. Already, Rep. Kristi Noem (R-S.D.), the state’s only member of the House, has distanced herself from the effort despite addressing the convention shortly before the resolution was passed.
“The congresswoman currently believes the best way for Congress to hold the president accountable is to continue aggressive committee oversight and investigations into the administration’s actions like the ongoing VA scandal, the targeting of conservative groups by the IRS, Benghazi, and the recent Taliban prisoner exchange,” said spokesperson Brittany Comins. The investigations have been going on for years, but thus far, nobody has been truly held accountable.
Despite ongoing coverups by the administration, other mega-scandals — Fast and Furious gun-running to Mexican cartels, for example — have even started to fade away even with lots of boisterous “investigations.” Critics say the current strategies are clearly not working. Meanwhile, analysts have cited numerous other impeachable crimes perpetrated by the administration as well: Arming al-Qaeda-linked jihadists in Syria and Libya, starting a war without congressional approval, NSA spying on Americans in violation of the Fourth Amendment, using the IRS to target political enemies, operating a mass-murder-via-drone program, Benghazigate, coverups and lies to Congress about all of the scandals, and much more.
The Sioux Falls Argus Leader, which first reported the news, quoted various delegates to the convention who supported or opposed the effort. State GOP officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Dr. Allen Unruh of Sioux Falls, a Tea Party activist who sponsored the measure, though, suggested that there were more than a few reasons to pursue impeachment. “I’ve got a thick book on impeachable offenses of the president,” Unruh was quoted as saying. South Dakota, he added, should “send a symbolic message that liberty shall be the law of the land.”
One delegate who did not support the resolution suggested that Obama should not be impeached merely for “political purposes.” Supporters of the effort countered that the Obama administration’s agenda involves far more than mere differences of opinion. “If anyone in this room cannot see the horrendous, traitorous scandals run by the Obama administration, I will pray for you,” said Larry Klipp, a retired U.S. Marine. Of course, more than a few proponents of impeachment have argued that the administration’s myriad crimes and constitutional violations come perilously close to treason.
South Dakota Democrats, though, were fuming, and not just because the GOP dominates state politics. Democrat Party boss Deb Knecht, for example, claimed that “instead” of supporting the “middle class,” Republicans “want to impeach the President.” She repeated the word “extreme” several times and added that elected Republican officials should repudiate their “extreme” party. “Make no mistake — tea party politics have taken over the SDGOP,” she added. It was not clear whether Knecht really thought Republicans would take advice from Democrats or whether her “extreme” antics were merely theatrical.
Multiple members of Congress have suggested that there are likely enough votes in the House to impeach the president. “He’s just absolutely ignoring the Constitution and ignoring the laws and ignoring the checks and balances,” Rep. Lou Barletta (R-Penn.) said in a recent interview, noting that there was “probably” enough support among representatives to impeach Obama if a vote were held. Before that, Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas) said, “if we were to impeach the president tomorrow, you could probably get the votes in the House of Representatives to do it.”
Last year, Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Texas) delivered Impeachable Offenses: The case for removing Barack Obama from office, to every single member of Congress. The book outlines numerous crimes perpetrated by the Obama administration potentially worthy of impeachment. “His goal is to eliminate our constitutional republic,” Stockman said, adding that Obama was smashing the Constitution’s restrictions on government power. “Last year I said I would consider impeachment as a last resort to stop Obama’s abuse of power. And, quite frankly, we’re running out of options…. He openly declared war on the Constitution.”
There may indeed be enough votes in the House for impeachment. Recent surveys also showed high levels of public support when respondents were asked whether certain scandals were serious enough to justify impeaching Obama. Getting the effort through the Democrat-controlled Senate, however, would be harder than impeachment in the House — especially because convicting the president and removing him from office would require a two-thirds majority of senators. Still, many activists are hoping that with mid-term elections coming up, enough Obama-supporting senators can be removed from office and impeachment may become more realistic.
Beyond Obama, however, multiple analysts have pointed out that the lawlessness and rule-by-decree machinations have become a staple of the executive branch. While the current White House occupant may have taken the abuses to unprecedented levels, what is really needed is for Congress to stop funding all of the usurpations and constitutional violations. Already, more than two thirds of Americans say the federal government is “out of control” and a threat to their basic liberties. With lawmakers still refusing to do their job and rein in or defund the violations of the Constitution by all branches of government, though, impeaching Obama will not solve the underlying problems.
Alex Newman is a correspondent for The New American, covering economics, education, politics, and more. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @ALEXNEWMAN_JOU.
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