veteranstoday--2020-02-03--The Founding Fathers on Impeachment: Holding office no protection from arrest…whatsoever…and so much

The Founding Fathers on Impeachment: Holding office no protection from arrest…whatsoever…and so much more

Editor ’ s note : The other issue is the trial itself , blocking testimony and evidence from a trial negates a trial .
It would require a constitutional amendment , not a majority vote , to eliminate evidence and testimony from a trial .
The Senate is only a jury , otherwise , all tenets of British common law were clearly intended to apply .
Not even a 2/3 vote of the Senate could alter the nature of a trial under the constitution .
This is a collection of selected background materials pertinent to the issue of what constitutes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , section 4 of the United States Constitution quoted below .
It includes excerpts from the notes of the debates at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 and from a few of the state ratifying conventions .
It is the second of six segments that together with footnotes comprise , Impeachment Grounds : A Collection of Selected Materials , CRS Report 98-882 .
The President , Vice President and all Civil Officers of the United States , shall be removed from Office on impeachment for , and Conviction of , Treason , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Misdemeanors .
U.S.Const .
Art .
II , §4 .
The Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia that produced the United States Constitution began its substantive work with the presentation of the Resolutions of Edmund Randolph of Virginia .
The Randolph Resolutions supplied a broad general outline of a constitution for a national government and the initial format for discussion .
The Ninth Resolution declared : “ Resolved that a National Judiciary be established to consist of one or more supreme tribunals , and of inferior tribunals to be chosen by the National Legislature to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and to receive punctually at stated times fixed compensation for their services .
that the jurisdiction [ of these tribunals ] shall be to hear & determine … all piracies & felonies on the high seas , captures from an enemy ; cases in which foreigners or citizens of other States applying to such jurisdictions may be interested , or which respect the collection of the National revenue ; impeachments of any National offices , and questions which may involve the national peace and harmony , ” I RECORDS OF THE FEDERAL CONVENTION @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( Madison ) ( May 29 , 1787 ) ( Farrand , ed .
1888 ) .
Impeachment was next mentioned when the Convention agreed that the President was “ to be removable on impeachment & conviction of mal-practice or neglect of duty , ” ID .
at 88 ( Madison ) ( June 2 , 1787 ) .
With a month ’ s reflection , two delegates , Pinkney and Morris , moved that the removal language be stricken : “ Mr .
Pinkney & Mr. Govr .
Morris moved to strike @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mr. P. observed .
he ought not be impeachable whilst in office “ Mr .
Davie .
If he be not impeachable whilst in office , he will spare no efforts or means whatever to get himself re-elected .
He considered this as an essential security for the good behavior of the Executive .
“ Mr .
Wilson concurred in the necessity of making the Executive impeachable whilst in office .
“ Mr .
Govr .
Morris .
He can do no criminal act without Coadjutors who may be punished .
In case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be sufficient proof of his innocence .
Besides who is to impeach ?
Is the impeachment to suspend his functions .
If it is not the mischief will go on .
If it is the impeachment will be nearly equivalent to a displacement , and will render the Executive dependent on those who are to impeach .
“ Col .
Mason .
No point is of more importance than that the right of impeachment should be continued .
Shall any man be above Justice ?
Above all shall that man be above it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ injustice ?
When great crimes were committed he was for punishing the principal as well as the Coadjutors .
There had been much debate & difficulty as to the mode of chusing the Executive .
He approved of that which had been adopted at first , namely of referring the appointment of the Natl .
Legislature .
One objection agst .
Electors were the danger of their being corrupted by the Candidates : & this furnished a peculiar reason in favor of impeachments whilst in office .
Shall the man who has practiced @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appointment in the first instance , be suffered to escape punishment , by repeating his guilt ?
“ Docr .
Franklin was for retaining the clause as favorable to the executive .
History furnishes one example only of a first Magistrate being formally brought to public Justice .
Everybody cried out agst this as unconstitutional .
What was the practice before this in cases where the chief Magistrate rendered himself obnoxious ?
Why recourse was had to an assassination in which he was not only deprived of his life but of the opportunity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
be the best way , therefore , to provide in the Constitution for the regular punishment of the Executive when his misconduct should deserve it , and for his honorable acquittal when he should be unjustly accused .
“ Mr .
Govr .
Morris admits corruption & some few other offences to be such as ought to be impeachable , but thought the cases ought to be enumerated & defined : “ Mr .
Madison — thought it indispensable that some provision should be made for defending the Community agst the incapacity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Magistrate .
The limitation of the period of his service was not sufficient security .
He might lose his capacity after his appointment .
He might pervert his administration into a scheme of peculation or oppression .
He might betray his trust to foreign powers… In the case of the Executive Magistracy which was to be administered by a single man , loss of capacity or corruption was more within the compass of probable events , and either of them might be fatal to the Republic .
“ Mr .
King expressed his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of liberty might enervate the Government we were forming .
He wished the House to recur to the primitive axiom that the three great departments of Govts .
should be separate & independent : that the Executive & Judiciary should be so as well as the Legislative : that the Executive should be so equally with the Judiciary .
Would this be the case if the Executive should be impeachable ?
It had been said that the Judiciary would be impeachable .
But it should have been remembered at the same time that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a limited time , but during good behavior .
It is necessary therefore that a forum should be established for trying misbehavior .
Was the Executive to hold his place during good behavior ?
— The Executive was to hold his place for a limited-term like the members of the Legislature ; Like them particularly the Senate whose members would continue in appointment the same term of 6 years .
He would periodically be tried for his behavior by his electors , who would continue or discontinue him in trust according to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Like them , therefore , he ought to be subject to no intermediate trial , by impeachment .
He ought not to be impeachable unless he hold his office during good behavior , a tenure which would be most agreeable to him ; provided an independent and effectual forum could be devised ; But under no circumstances ought he to be impeachable by the Legislature .
This would be destructive of his independence and of the principles of the Constitution .
He relied on the vigor of the Executive as a great @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mr .
Randolph .
The propriety of impeachments was a favorite principle with him ; Guilt , wherever found , ought to be punished .
The Executive will have great opportunities of abusing his power ; particularly in a time of war when the military force , and in some respects , the public money will be in his hands .
Should no regular punishment be provided , it will be irregularly inflicted by tumults & insurrections .
He is aware of the necessity of proceeding with a cautious hand , and of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Legislature from the business .
He suggested for consideration an idea which had fallen ( from Col Hamilton ) of composing a forum out of the Judges belonging to the States : and even of requiring some preliminary inquest whether just grounds of impeachment existed .
“ Mr.Govr .
Morris ’ s opinion had been changed by the arguments used in the discussion .
He was now sensible of the necessity of impeachments if the Executive was to continue for any time in office .
Our Executive was not like a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ less like one having a hereditary interest in his office .
He may be bribed by a greater interest to betray his trust , and no one would say that we ought to expose ourselves to the danger of seeing the first Magistrate in foreign pay without being able to guard agst it by displacing him .
One would think the King of England well secured agst bribery .
He has as it were a fee simple in the whole Kingdom .
Yet Charles II was bribed by Louis XIV .
The Executive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for treachery ; Corrupting his electors , and incapacity were other causes of impeachment .
For the latter he should be punished not as a man , but as an officer , and punished only by degradation from his office .
This Magistrate is not the King but the prime-Minister .
The people are the King .
When we make him amenable to Justice however we should take care to provide some mode that will not make him dependent on the Legislature.
” II FARRAND 64-9 ( Madison ) ( July 20 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ make the Executive removable on impeachment but moved on without addressing the particulars .
The delegates assigned the Committee on Detail the task of working these and other matters individually agreed upon into a cohesive draft .
The draft the Committee presented on August 6 designated as the “ President ” that officer who had been variously referred to as the “ Executive ” , the “ first Magistrate ” up until then .
It also declared that “ He shall be removed from his office on impeachment by the House of Representatives @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , of treason , bribery , or corruption , ” ID .
at 186-87 ( Madison ) .
After extensive discussion of other issues , the Convention referred a number of propositions to the Committee on Detail for examination , including a proposal for a “ Council of State ” to assist the President and to consist of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court as well as five designated department heads ( secretary of domestic affairs , secretary of commerce and finance , etc . )
appointed by the President .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be liable to impeachment and removal from office for neglect of duty , malversation , or corruption , ” ID .
at 335-38 ( Madison ) ( August 20 , 1787 ) .
The Committee reported a proposal on August 22 that , among other things , called for a Council , but made no mention of impeachment of its members .
It did suggest that “ The Judges of the Supreme Court shall be triable by the Senate , on impeachment by the House of Representatives , ” but was silent as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
at 367 ( Journal ) .
The delegates subsequently voted to assign impeachment and a handful of other nettlesome questions to a second committee , the so-called “ Committee of Eleven.
” The Committee ’ s partial report packaged together with a number of recommendations concerning the President including one that , “ He shall be removed from his office on impeachment by the House of Representatives , and conviction by the Senate , for Treason , or bribery … ” ID .
at 499 ( Madison ) ( September 4 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recommendation four days later on the eighth of September : “ The clause referring to the Senate , the trial of impeachments agst .
the President , for Treason & bribery , was taken up .
“ Col .
Mason .
Why is the provision restrained to Treason & bribery only ?
Treason , as defined in the Constitution , will not reach many great and dangerous offences .
Hastings is not guilty of Treason .
Attempts to subvert the Constitution may not be Treason as above defined— As bills of attainder which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , it is the more necessary to extend : the power of impeachments .
He moved .
to add after ‘ bribery ’ ‘ or maladministration ’ .
Mr. Gerry seconded him— “ Mr .
Madison So vague a term will be equivalent to a tenure during pleasure of the Senate .
“ Mr .
Govr Morris , it will not be put in force & can do no harm— An election of every four years will prevent maladministration .
“ On the question thus altered [ the Convention agreed ] .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just agreed to , the word ‘ State ’ after the words [ ‘ ] misdemeanors against ’ was struck out , and the words ‘ United States ’ inserted , < unanimously > in order to remove ambiguity— “ On the question to agree to clause as amended , [ the Convention agreed ] “ On motion ‘ The vice-President and other Civil officers and the U.S. shall be removed from office on impeachment and conviction as aforesaid ’ was added to the clause on the subject of impeachments.
” “ A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ revise the stile of and arrange the articles which had been agreed to by the House.
” ID .
at 550-53 ( Madison ) .
The Committee on Style reported out the language now found in Article II , Section 4 .
ID .
at 600 .
“ Mr .
Wilson… The last observation respects the judges .
It is said that , if they are to decide against the law , one house will impeach them , and the other will convict them .
I hope gentlemen will show how this can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be admitted as proof .
The judges are to be impeached because they decide an act null and void , that was made in defiance of the Constitution !
What House of Representatives would dare to impeach , or Senate to commit , judges for the performance of their duty ?
” II THE DEBATES IN THE SEVERAL STATE CONVENTIONS ON THE ADOPTION OF THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION ( ELLIOT ) , 478 ( Pennsylvania ) ( December 4 , 1787 ) ( Elliot , ed .
1888 ) .
“ Mr .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to observe that this clause , vesting the power of impeachment in the House of Representatives , is one of the greatest securities for the due execution of all public offices .
Every government requires it .
Every man ought to be amenable for his conduct , and there are no persons so proper to complain of the public officers as the representatives of the people at large .
The representatives of the people know the feelings of the people at large and will be ready enough to make complaints .
If @ @ @ @ @ @ @ consequences might be fatal .
It will be not only the means of punishing misconduct , but it will prevent misconduct .
A man in public office who knows that there is no tribunal to punish him may be ready to deviate from his duty ; but if he knows there is a tribunal for that purpose , although he may be a man of no principle , the very terror of punishment will perhaps deter him , ” IV ELLIOT 32 ( North Carolina ) ( July 24 , 1788 ) .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ was mentioned by one gentleman , that petty officer might be impeached .
It appears to me , sir , to be the most horrid ignorance to suppose that every officer , however trifling his office , is to be impeached for every petty offence ; and that every man , who should be injured by such petty officers , could get no redress but by this mode of impeachment , at the seat of government , at the distance of several hundred miles , whither he would be obliged to summon a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ every gentleman in this committee must see plainly that impeachments can not extend to inferior officers of the United States .
Such a construction can not be supported without a departure from the usual and well-known practice both in England and America .
But this clause empowers the House of Representatives , which is the grand inquest of the Union at large , to bring great offenders to justice .
It will be a kind of state trial for high crimes and misdemeanors , ” IV ELLIOT 343-44 ( North Carolina ) ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mr .
Madison… The danger , then , consists merely in this—the President can displace from office a man whose merits require that he should be continued in it .
What will be the motives which the President can feel for such abuse of his power , and the restraints that operate to prevent it ?
In the first place , he will be impeachable by this house , before the Senate , for such an act of maladministration ; for I contend that the wanton removal of a meritorious officer would subject @ @ @ @ @ @ @ own high trust , ” IV ELLIOT 380 ( Debate during the First Congress ) ( June 16 , 1789 ) ; also in 1 ANNALS OF CONGRESS 498 .
Disclaimer : This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service ( CRS ) .
CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress .
It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress .
Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Congress in connection with CRS ’ s institutional role .
CRS Reports , as a work of the United States Government , are not subject to copyright protection in the United States .
Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS .
However , as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party , you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material .
Congressional Research Service 98-894 · @ @ @ @

Editor’s note: The other issue is the trial itself, blocking testimony and evidence from a trial negates a trial. It would require a constitutional amendment, not a majority vote, to eliminate evidence and testimony from a trial.
The Senate is only a jury, otherwise, all tenets of British common law were clearly intended to apply. Not even a 2/3 vote of the Senate could alter the nature of a trial under the constitution.
Impeachment Grounds: Part 2: Selected Constitutional Convention Materials
October 30, 1998 – Congressional Research Service
SUMMARY by Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist in American Public Law
This is a collection of selected background materials pertinent to the issue of what constitutes impeachable misconduct for purposes of Article II, section 4 of the United States Constitution quoted below. It includes excerpts from the notes of the debates at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 and from a few of the state ratifying conventions. It is the second of six segments that together with footnotes comprise, Impeachment Grounds: A Collection of Selected Materials, CRS Report 98-882.
The President, Vice President and all Civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors. U.S.Const. Art. II, §4.
Constitutional Convention of 1787
The Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia that produced the United States Constitution began its substantive work with the presentation of the Resolutions of Edmund Randolph of Virginia. The Randolph Resolutions supplied a broad general outline of a constitution for a national government and the initial format for discussion. The Ninth Resolution declared:
“Resolved that a National Judiciary be established to consist of one or more supreme tribunals, and of inferior tribunals to be chosen by the National Legislature to hold their offices during good behavior, and to receive punctually at stated times fixed compensation for their services. that the jurisdiction [of these tribunals] shall be to hear & determine … all piracies & felonies on the high seas, captures from an enemy; cases in which foreigners or citizens of other States applying to such jurisdictions may be interested, or which respect the collection of the National revenue; impeachments of any National offices, and questions which may involve the national peace and harmony,” I RECORDS OF THE FEDERAL CONVENTION OF 1787 (FARRAND), 21-2 (Madison) (May 29, 1787) (Farrand, ed. 1888).
Impeachment was next mentioned when the Convention agreed that the President was “to be removable on impeachment & conviction of mal-practice or neglect of duty,” ID. at 88 (Madison) (June 2, 1787). With a month’s reflection, two delegates, Pinkney and Morris, moved that the removal language be stricken:
“Mr. Pinkney & Mr. Govr. Morris moved to strike out this part of the Resolution. Mr. P. observed. he ought not be impeachable whilst in office
“Mr. Davie. If he be not impeachable whilst in office, he will spare no efforts or means whatever to get himself re-elected. He considered this as an essential security for the good behavior of the Executive.
“Mr. Wilson concurred in the necessity of making the Executive impeachable whilst in office.
“Mr. Govr. Morris. He can do no criminal act without Coadjutors who may be punished. In case he should be re-elected, that will be sufficient proof of his innocence. Besides who is to impeach? Is the impeachment to suspend his functions. If it is not the mischief will go on. If it is the impeachment will be nearly equivalent to a displacement, and will render the Executive dependent on those who are to impeach.
“Col. Mason. No point is of more importance than that the right of impeachment should be continued. Shall any man be above Justice? Above all shall that man be above it, who can commit the most extensive injustice? When great crimes were committed he was for punishing the principal as well as the Coadjutors. There had been much debate & difficulty as to the mode of chusing the Executive. He approved of that which had been adopted at first, namely of referring the appointment of the Natl. Legislature. One objection agst. Electors were the danger of their being corrupted by the Candidates: & this furnished a peculiar reason in favor of impeachments whilst in office. Shall the man who has practiced corruption & by that means procured his appointment in the first instance, be suffered to escape punishment, by repeating his guilt?
“Docr. Franklin was for retaining the clause as favorable to the executive. History furnishes one example only of a first Magistrate being formally brought to public Justice. Everybody cried out agst this as unconstitutional. What was the practice before this in cases where the chief Magistrate rendered himself obnoxious? Why recourse was had to an assassination in which he was not only deprived of his life but of the opportunity of vindicating his character. It wd. be the best way, therefore, to provide in the Constitution for the regular punishment of the Executive when his misconduct should deserve it, and for his honorable acquittal when he should be unjustly accused.
“Mr. Govr. Morris admits corruption & some few other offences to be such as ought to be impeachable, but thought the cases ought to be enumerated & defined:
“Mr. Madison — thought it indispensable that some provision should be made for defending the Community agst the incapacity, negligence or perfidy of the chief Magistrate. The limitation of the period of his service was not sufficient security. He might lose his capacity after his appointment. He might pervert his administration into a scheme of peculation or oppression. He might betray his trust to foreign powers… In the case of the Executive Magistracy which was to be administered by a single man, loss of capacity or corruption was more within the compass of probable events, and either of them might be fatal to the Republic.
“Mr. King expressed his apprehensions that an extreme caution in favor of liberty might enervate the Government we were forming. He wished the House to recur to the primitive axiom that the three great departments of Govts. should be separate & independent: that the Executive & Judiciary should be so as well as the Legislative: that the Executive should be so equally with the
Judiciary. Would this be the case if the Executive should be impeachable? It had been said that the
Judiciary would be impeachable. But it should have been remembered at the same time that the Judiciary hold their places not for a limited time, but during good behavior. It is necessary therefore that a forum should be established for trying misbehavior. Was the Executive to hold his place during good behavior? — The Executive was to hold his place for a limited-term like the members of the Legislature; Like them particularly the Senate whose members would continue in appointment the same term of 6 years. He would periodically be tried for his behavior by his electors, who would continue or discontinue him in trust according to the manner in which he had discharged it. Like them, therefore, he ought to be subject to no intermediate trial, by impeachment. He ought not to be impeachable unless he hold his office during good behavior, a tenure which would be most agreeable to him; provided an independent and effectual forum could be devised; But under no circumstances ought he to be impeachable by the Legislature. This would be destructive of his independence and of the principles of the Constitution. He relied on the vigor of the Executive as a great security for the public liberties.
“Mr. Randolph. The propriety of impeachments was a favorite principle with him; Guilt, wherever found, ought to be punished. The Executive will have great opportunities of abusing his power; particularly in a time of war when the military force, and in some respects, the public money will be in his hands. Should no regular punishment be provided, it will be irregularly inflicted by tumults & insurrections. He is aware of the necessity of proceeding with a cautious hand, and of excluding as much as possible the influence of the Legislature from the business. He suggested for consideration an idea which had fallen (from Col Hamilton) of composing a forum out of the Judges belonging to the States: and even of requiring some preliminary inquest whether just grounds of impeachment existed.
“Mr.Govr. Morris’s opinion had been changed by the arguments used in the discussion. He was now sensible of the necessity of impeachments if the Executive was to continue for any time in office. Our Executive was not like a Magistrate having a life interest, much less like one having a hereditary interest in his office. He may be bribed by a greater interest to betray his trust, and no one would say that we ought to expose ourselves to the danger of seeing the first Magistrate in foreign pay without being able to guard agst it by displacing him. One would think the King of England well secured agst bribery. He has as it were a fee simple in the whole Kingdom. Yet Charles II was bribed by Louis XIV. The Executive ought, therefore, to be impeachable for treachery; Corrupting his electors, and incapacity were other causes of impeachment.
For the latter he should be punished not as a man, but as an officer, and punished only by degradation from his office. This Magistrate is not the King but the prime-Minister. The people are the King. When we make him amenable to Justice however we should take care to provide some mode that will not make him dependent on the Legislature.” II FARRAND 64-9 (Madison) (July 20, 1787).
The Convention voted to make the Executive removable on impeachment but moved on without addressing the particulars. The delegates assigned the Committee on Detail the task of working these and other matters individually agreed upon into a cohesive draft. The draft the Committee presented on August 6 designated as the “President” that officer who had been variously referred to as the “Executive”, the “first Magistrate” up until then. It also declared that “He shall be removed from his office on impeachment by the House of Representatives, and convicted in the Supreme Court, of treason, bribery, or corruption,” ID. at 186-87 (Madison).
After extensive discussion of other issues, the Convention referred a number of propositions to the Committee on Detail for examination, including a proposal for a “Council of State” to assist the President and to consist of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court as well as five designated department heads (secretary of domestic affairs, secretary of commerce and finance, etc.) appointed by the President. “Each of the Officers above mentioned shall be liable to impeachment and removal from office for neglect of duty, malversation, or corruption,” ID. at 335-38 (Madison) (August 20, 1787).
The Committee reported a proposal on August 22 that, among other things, called for a Council, but made no mention of impeachment of its members. It did suggest that “The Judges of the Supreme Court shall be triable by the Senate, on impeachment by the House of Representatives,” but was silent as to the grounds for impeachment, ID. at 367 (Journal).
The delegates subsequently voted to assign impeachment and a handful of other nettlesome questions to a second committee, the so-called “Committee of Eleven.” The Committee’s partial report packaged together with a number of recommendations concerning the President including one that, “He shall be removed from his office on impeachment by the House of Representatives, and conviction by the Senate, for Treason, or bribery …” ID. at 499 (Madison) (September 4, 1787).
The Convention debated the recommendation four days later on the eighth of September:
“The clause referring to the Senate, the trial of impeachments agst. the President, for Treason & bribery, was taken up.
“Col. Mason. Why is the provision restrained to Treason & bribery only? Treason, as defined in the Constitution, will not reach many great and dangerous offences. Hastings is not guilty of Treason. Attempts to subvert the Constitution may not be Treason as above defined— As bills of attainder which have saved the British Constitution are forbidden, it is the more necessary to extend: the power of impeachments. He moved. to add after ‘bribery’ ‘or maladministration’. Mr. Gerry seconded him—
“Mr. Madison So vague a term will be equivalent to a tenure during pleasure of the Senate.
“Mr. Govr Morris, it will not be put in force & can do no harm— An election of every four years will prevent maladministration.
“Col. Mason withdrew ‘maladministration’ & substitutes ‘other high crimes & misdemeanors’
“On the question thus altered [the Convention agreed].
“In the amendment of Col: Mason just agreed to, the word ‘State’ after the words
[‘]misdemeanors against’ was struck out, and the words ‘United States’ inserted, in order to remove ambiguity—
“On the question to agree to clause as amended, [the Convention agreed]
“On motion ‘The vice-President and other Civil officers and the U.S. shall be removed from office on impeachment and conviction as aforesaid’ was added to the clause on the subject of impeachments.”
“A Committee was then appointed by Ballot to revise the stile of and arrange the articles which had been agreed to by the House.” ID. at 550-53 (Madison). The Committee on Style reported out the language now found in Article II, Section 4. ID. at 600.
State Ratifying Conventions et al.
“Mr. Wilson… The last observation respects the judges. It is said that, if they are to decide against the law, one house will impeach them, and the other will convict them. I hope gentlemen will show how this can happen; for bare supposition ought not to be admitted as proof. The judges are to be impeached because they decide an act null and void, that was made in defiance of the Constitution! What House of Representatives would dare to impeach, or Senate to commit, judges for the performance of their duty?” II THE DEBATES IN THE SEVERAL STATE CONVENTIONS ON THE ADOPTION OF THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION (ELLIOT), 478 (Pennsylvania) (December 4, 1787) (Elliot, ed. 1888).
“Mr. Iredell. Mr. Chairman, I was going to observe that this clause, vesting the power of impeachment in the House of Representatives, is one of the greatest securities for the due execution of all public offices. Every government requires it. Every man ought to be amenable for his conduct, and there are no persons so proper to complain of the public officers as the representatives of the people at large. The representatives of the people know the feelings of the people at large and will be ready enough to make complaints. If this power were not provided, the consequences might be fatal. It will be not only the means of punishing misconduct, but it will prevent misconduct. A man in public office who knows that there is no tribunal to punish him may be ready to deviate from his duty; but if he knows there is a tribunal for that purpose, although he may be a man of no principle, the very terror of punishment will perhaps deter him,” IV ELLIOT 32 (North Carolina) (July 24, 1788).
“Mr. Maclaine… I recollect it was mentioned by one gentleman, that petty officer might be impeached. It appears to me, sir, to be the most horrid ignorance to suppose that every officer, however trifling his office, is to be impeached for every petty offence; and that every man, who should be injured by such petty officers, could get no redress but by this mode of impeachment, at the seat of government, at the distance of several hundred miles, whither he would be obliged to summon a great number of witnesses. I hope every gentleman in this committee must see plainly that impeachments cannot extend to inferior officers of the United States. Such a construction cannot be supported without a departure from the usual and well-known practice both in England and America. But this clause empowers the House of Representatives, which is the grand inquest of the Union at large, to bring great offenders to justice. It will be a kind of state trial for high crimes and misdemeanors,” IV ELLIOT 343-44 (North Carolina) (July 25, 1788).
“Mr. Madison… The danger, then, consists merely in this—the President can displace from office a man whose merits require that he should be continued in it. What will be the motives which the President can feel for such abuse of his power, and the restraints that operate to prevent it? In the first place, he will be impeachable by this house, before the Senate, for such an act of maladministration; for I contend that the wanton removal of a meritorious officer would subject him to impeachment and removal from his own high trust,” IV ELLIOT 380 (Debate during the First Congress) (June 16, 1789); also in 1 ANNALS OF CONGRESS 498.
Author Information: Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist in American Public Law
Disclaimer: This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material. Congressional Research Service 98-894 · VERSION 2 · NEW


veteranstoday--2020-02-03--Medicinal Cannibalism: A Corpse a Day Keeps the Doctor Away

The Gruesome History of Eating Corpses as Medicine The last line of a 17th century poem by John Donne prompted Louise Noble ’ s quest .
“ Women , ” the line read , are not only “ Sweetness and wit , ” but “ mummy , possessed.
” Sweetness and wit , sure .
But mummy ?
In her search for an explanation , Noble , a lecturer of English at the University of New England in Australia , made a surprising discovery : That word recurs throughout the literature of early modern Europe , from Donne ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Shakespeare ’ s “ Othello ” and Edmund Spenser ’ s “ The Faerie Queene , ” because mummies and other preserved and fresh human remains were a common ingredient in the medicine of that time .
In short : Not long ago , Europeans were cannibals .
Noble ’ s new book , Medicinal Cannibalism in Early Modern English Literature and Culture , and another by Richard Sugg of England ’ s University of Durham , Mummies , Cannibals and Vampires : The History of Corpse Medicine from the Renaissance to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ years , peaking in the 16th and 17th centuries , many Europeans , including royalty , priests and scientists , routinely ingested remedies containing human bones , blood and fat as medicine for everything from headaches to epilepsy .
There were few vocal opponents of the…..Read More :

By Maria Dolan/Smithsonianmag.com
The last line of the 17th-century poem by John Donne prompted Louise Noble’s quest. “Women,” the line read, are not only “Sweetness and wit,” but “mummy possessed.”
Sweetness and wit, sure. But mummy? In her search for an explanation, Noble, a lecturer of English at the University of New England in Australia, made a surprising discovery: That word recurs throughout the literature of early modern Europe, from Donne’s “Love’s Alchemy” to Shakespeare’s “Othello” and Edmund Spenser’s “The Faerie Queene,” because mummies and other preserved and fresh human remains were a common ingredient in the medicine of that time. In short: Not long ago, Europeans were cannibals.
Noble’s new book, Medicinal Cannibalism in Early Modern English Literature and Culture, and another by Richard Sugg of England’s University of Durham called Mummies, Cannibals and Vampires: The History of Corpse Medicine from the Renaissance to the Victorians, reveal that for several hundred years, peaking in the 16th and 17th centuries, many Europeans, including royalty, priests and scientists, routinely ingested remedies containing human bones, blood and fat as medicine for everything from headaches to epilepsy. There were few vocal opponents of the…


veteranstoday--2020-02-03--Atzmon: Hope for an End to Intimidation, Harassment and Bullying

On Thursday night , the Jewish charity , Campaign Against Antisemitsm ( CAA ) declared that it would “ be selecting a number of future dates on which to picket the 606 [ jazz ] club over its decision ” to present a jazz performance by yours truly .
With this threat , CAA crossed the line .
This time it wasn ’ t just going after me or my band , this time its threat encompassed an entire community of musicians and music lovers for whom the 606 club is a preeminent venue , and none of whom have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ideas .
Such threats are anathema to the values of British and western culture : the way to counter ideas with which they don ’ t agree is to present their own position .
The tactic of gross intimidation , of menacing an entire community over the legal speech of one member are more characteristic of organised crime than of a British charity .
Yesterday I reported the CAA ’ s actions to the police .
They took my complaint very seriously and I was interviewed for two hours .
I had the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ known to the police .
During the time the police interviewed me , I received a message that the CAA is under investigation by the Charities Commission .
I was advised that every musician , music venue , promoter or audience member who is or has been subject to any intimidation or harassment by the CAA should contact the police immediately .
No one should be harassed , especially by a charity , and I want to believe that the threats to British politicians , artists , intellectuals , journalists , venues and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an end .
Such a development will make life safer and more comfortable for Jews and Gentiles alike .

By Gilad Atzmon
On Thursday night, the Jewish charity, Campaign Against Antisemitsm (CAA) declared that it would “be selecting a number of future dates on which to picket the 606 [jazz] club over its decision” to present a jazz performance by yours truly. With this threat, CAA crossed the line. This time it wasn’t just going after me or my band, this time its threat encompassed an entire community of musicians and music lovers for whom the 606 club is a preeminent venue, and none of whom have anything to do with me or my ideas.
Such threats are anathema to the values of British and western culture: the way to counter ideas with which they don’t agree is to present their own position. The tactic of gross intimidation, of menacing an entire community over the legal speech of one member are more characteristic of organised crime than of a British charity.
Yesterday I reported the CAA’s actions to the police. They took my complaint very seriously and I was interviewed for two hours. I had the strong impression that the matter was already known to the police.
During the time the police interviewed me, I received a message that the CAA is under investigation by the Charities Commission. I was advised that every musician, music venue, promoter or audience member who is or has been subject to any intimidation or harassment by the CAA should contact the police immediately. No one should be harassed, especially by a charity, and I want to believe that the threats to British politicians, artists, intellectuals, journalists, venues and ordinary people are about to come to an end. Such a development will make life safer and more comfortable for Jews and Gentiles alike.
Gilad Atzmon is an Israeli-born British jazz saxophonist, novelist, political activist, and writer. Atzmon’s album Exile was BBC jazz album of the year in 2003. Playing over 100 dates a year, he has been called “surely the hardest-gigging man in British jazz.” His albums, of which he has recorded nine to date, often explore the music of the Middle East and political themes. He has described himself as a “devoted political artist.” He supports the Palestinian right of return and the one-state solution in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His criticisms of Zionism, Jewish identity, and Judaism, as well as his controversial views on The Holocaust and Jewish history, have led to allegations of antisemitism from both Zionists and anti-Zionists. A profile in The Guardian in 2009 which described Atzmon as “one of London’s finest saxophonists” stated: “It is Atzmon’s blunt anti-Zionism rather than the music that has given him an international profile, particularly in the Arab world, where his essays are widely read.” His book The Wandering Who? is available at Amazon.com www.gilad.co.uk


veteranstoday--2020-02-03--Intel Drop: Backchannel Ultimatum to Erdogan and Trump

Veterans Today has received confirmation from the highest Russian sources that its intelligence analysis of the covert US-Turkish moves in Syria and Iraq , moves in aid of ISIS and al Qaeda , was 100 % correct .
“ As long as the Turks recognize Syria as the Russian sphere of influence , they ’ ll be ok with it .
But if the Turks challenge that and start supporting ISIS again , the Russians will make a move , because they don ’ t want the Turks to import ISIS ’ s Islamism in the Russian Caucuses .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more negotiation power .
They did the same with the immigration crisis in 2015 , 2016 .
The Russians have launched their fatal bombardment campaign against the militants in west Aleppo and elsewhere after hitting the base with a drone attack today .
Russia had had enough and anyone who chooses to interfere will face consequences .
Even the most notorious fool and madman does not want to fight with Russia .
Nobody wants to fight with Russia !
It is like death !
No options !
Moreover , Idlib is not a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ else ’ s territory and for strangers – the spirit and endurance are not enough !
The USA dreams that anyone would start a military conflict with Russia , just to stay away and help indirectly , through third parties …… This is their blue dream !
But they can not leave their NATO ally face-to-face with Russia either .
Therefore , it will be easier to help the one who wins the fight : if Russia hits hard , it means Erdogan will get a good lesson and a good flogging as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any serious damage : it means she deserves it like a presumptuous beast !
It is also necessary to teach Russia properly ( as the United States believes ) !
” This is a pretty good translation of a message to both Turkey and the United States from Russia .
Additionally , it doesn ’ t take a genius to see where international law stands on this , with Russia and Syria , and , by our estimation , the huge error Trump is making by trusting Erdogan and the huge error Erdogan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ believe , after many months , Russia is absolutely aware that it is dealing with a pair of minor shills for international gangsters and little more .
That it has taken Russia that long…

By Gordon Duff, Senior Editor
VT has received confirmation from the highest Russian sources that its intelligence analysis of the covert US-Turkish moves in Syria and Iraq, moves in aid of ISIS and al Qaeda, was 100% correct.
“As long as the Turks recognize Syria as the Russian sphere of influence, they’ll be ok with it. But if the Turks challenge that and start supporting ISIS again, the Russians will make a move, because they don’t want the Turks to import ISIS’s Islamism in the Russian Caucuses.
The Turks create such scenarios to give themselves more negotiation power. They did the same with the immigration crisis in 2015, 2016.
The Russians have launched their fatal bombardment campaign against the militants in west Aleppo and elsewhere after hitting the base with a drone attack today. Russia had had enough and anyone who chooses to interfere will face consequences. Even the most notorious fool and madman does not want to fight with Russia. Nobody wants to fight with Russia! It is like death! No options! Moreover, Idlib is not a Turkish territory! To fight for someone else’s territory and for strangers – the spirit and endurance are not enough! The USA dreams that anyone would start a military conflict with Russia, just to stay away and help indirectly, through third parties …… This is their blue dream! But they cannot leave their NATO ally face-to-face with Russia either. Therefore, it will be easier to help the one who wins the fight: if Russia hits hard, it means Erdogan will get a good lesson and a good flogging as a naughty student if Russia will suffer any serious damage: it means she deserves it like a presumptuous beast! It is also necessary to teach Russia properly (as the United States believes)!” This is a pretty good translation of a message to both Turkey and the United States from Russia. The language is plain. Additionally, it doesn’t take a genius to see where international law stands on this, with Russia and Syria, and, by our estimation, the huge error Trump is making by trusting Erdogan and the huge error Erdogan is making by trusting Trump. We believe, after many months, Russia is absolutely aware that it is dealing with a pair of minor shills for international gangsters and little more. That it has taken Russia that long…
Gordon Duff posted articles on VT from 2008 to 2022. He is a Marine combat veteran of the Vietnam War. A disabled veteran, he worked on veterans and POW issues for decades. Gordon is an accredited diplomat and is generally accepted as one of the top global intelligence specialists. He manages the world’s largest private intelligence organization and regularly consults with governments challenged by security issues. Duff has traveled extensively, is published around the world, and is a regular guest on TV and radio in more than “several” countries. He is also a trained chef, wine enthusiast, avid motorcyclist, and gunsmith specializing in historical weapons and restoration. Business experience and interests are in energy and defense technology. Gordon’s Archives: 2008-2015
Gordon’s Archives: 2016-2022


veteranstoday--2020-02-03--Suppressed History: Explaining the Context of the Deep State

Open Letter from Richard C. Cook to Rev .
N.T .
Wright .
Rev .
N.T .
Wright is a former Anglican bishop and the author of numerous books on the Christian religion .
He is presently a Senior Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall , Oxford University , U.K. My name is Richard C. Cook .
I am a retired U.S. government analyst .
Among other writings , I am the author of Challenger Revealed : An Insider ’ s Account of How the Reagan Administration Caused the Greatest Tragedy of the Space Age .
I am in the process @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deeply impressed by the depth and breadth of your knowledge .
I have particularly appreciated your Paul : A Biography , your book When God Became King , and Evil and the Justice of God .
I would like to make a few comments on the latter book , Evil and the Judgment of God .
In your book , you make a very big deal of 9/11 and the “ evil ” it manifested , when , as you say , terrorists supposedly flew airplanes into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we can agree that such events have a historical context .
Thus if we study the history of the modern world , particularly from the mid-19th century onwards , including WWI , WWII , the Vietnam War , the Cold War , the destruction of Yugoslavia by NATO , and the many Middle Eastern regime-change wars since the 1980s , 9/11 may be seen to fit right in .
Many of us believe that 9/11 was , in fact , a false flag attack carried out by the intelligence services of the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provide a pretext for the endless “ War on Terror ” and the ongoing control of the imperialist West by what is called the “ Deep State ” or , now , “ the Blob.
” 9/11 was not done by “ Al-Qaeda ” or “ Osama bin Laden.
” These quasi-mythical entities were largely the creation of Western intelligence and the mass media to conceal the real masterminds .
The best reliable source for authentic information on the 9/11 attacks , though not the only one , is the website for Veterans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ material in detail , particularly if you continue to lead with 9/11 as your exemplar of evil on the world stage .
Otherwise , you risk undermining the credibility of the rest of your important message .
Looking at the broader themes , modern research is showing that the world wars of the 20th century , as well as the Bolshevik Revolution , were without doubt events initiated by Great Britain to take down Germany and Russia as competing powers to the British Empire .
It has been documented that Great Britain and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through constant provocations , causing the “ enemy ” to fire the first shots so that the imperial bullies could look like they were taking the moral high ground .
This strategy continues at present , with the U.S. , egged on by Israel , imposing “ sanctions ” against Iran , with the clear intent of inducing that nation to retaliate .
Iran will then be destroyed .
This , along with the other regime change wars , will continue to forward the agenda of making Israel the dominant power in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the world ’ s leading imperial power , to start a century of war were directed and implemented largely by members of British secret societies , including Freemasonic lodges headed by the British royal family , and their U.S. counterparts , including American banking and industrial oligarchs , such as Rockefeller , Schiff , and Morgan .
See particularly two books by British researchers Gerry Docherty and Jim Macgregor : Hidden History : The Secret Origins of the First World War and Prolonging the Agony : How the Anglo-American Establishment Deliberately Extended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ How Britain Initiated Both World Wars by Nick Kollerstrom and Conjuring Hitler : How Britain and America made the Third Reich by Guido Giacomo Preparata ; and Freedom Betrayed by former U.S. President Herbert Hoover .
On the machinations of the British lodges see The Karma of Untruthfulness by Rudolf Steiner .
Another useful book is Unnecessary War by Patrick Buchanan .
On the nature of British Freemasonry , see Darkness Visible : A Christian Appraisal of Freemasonry by Walton Hannah , which includes comments on how the Anglican Church compromised itself in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cult .
In his book Freedom Betrayed , published posthumously in 2011 , Herbert Hoover described in detail how President Franklin Roosevelt armed Britain and France against Germany , then goaded Japan into attacking at Pearl Harbor , in order to engage in a world war mainly to increase U.S. business profits and employment .
It was World War II , Hoover writes , not the New Deal , that brought the U.S. out of the Great Depression .
To accomplish this , Roosevelt ruthlessly stamped out dissent , mocking opponents to his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about their intentions .
Hoover ’ s analysis , suppressed for 50 years , is being characterized as “ revisionist ” history so that it doesn ’ t have to be taken seriously and reckoned with by the warmongering media .
We can agree , I believe , that since World War II , the dominant role of the British Empire in the world has been taken over by the U.S. as the “ Great Hegemon.
” What is seldom recognized is that behind these horrible events that constitute the greater modern “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ economic debacle deriving largely from the “ Jewish ” financial system , as it has been frequently called , controlling the finances of all modern nations .
This system was perfected in its present form by the Rothschilds during the 1800s .
Foremost among these was the British branch of the Rothschilds , as I am sure you well know .
This system , based on casting the whole of society into perpetual debt , has diverted the tremendous productive potential of the Industrial Revolution into the hands of the bankers , particularly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the City of London , Wall Street , and the big banks of other world financial centers .
The system is based on usury , which the Catholic Church had tried to outlaw during the Middle Ages .
But usury became the norm over time .
Martin Luther has been excoriated for publishing The Jews and Their Lies in 1543 , but what people don ’ t realize is that his criticism was largely based on the impoverishment of communities throughout Europe through the practice of usury by Jewish lenders .
The rulers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and dependent on the Jewish usurers that they allowed the system to gradually take over everything .
In your book , you decry the indebtedness of poor nations to the international financial system and how that system plunges millions of people even deeper into poverty .
But you do not seem to appreciate enough how the system works to engender poverty and promote wars even in the developed part of the world .
All modern wars have been financed through the private banking system and its extension of credit to governments at war @ @ @ @ @ @ @ financial magnates through strangling the populace with taxes and destroying individual savings through inflation .
The mechanisms for all this are well-understood by the financial perpetrators and apologists , including their media minions .
In Great Britain , it was Jewish leaders who sponsored William of Orange in his invasion of England in the “ Glorious Revolution ” of 1688 .
Soon afterward the privately-owned Bank of England was set up and became the model for entrenched state-sanctioned usury from then on .
Eventually , it was replicated in America through the Federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Jewish financiers and their American industrialist cronies from 1913 until today .
The point I very much wish to get across to you , Rev .
Wright , is that apart from the disastrous monetary system based on usury which the largely Jewish bankers foisted on Europe over a period of centuries , followed by America , is not the only way that a nation can create , or manage , money .
There are other methods that have been tried at various times and places but have been choked out by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these methods are publicly owned and operated banking systems controlled by central governments .
You can learn more about these things through organizations like the Public Banking Institute in the U.S. You can also read my own book on the subject entitled We Hold These Truths : The Hope of Monetary Reform .
The inspiration for this admittedly small contribution to economic literature deriving from my own experience with the U.S. Treasury Department was the Biblical account of Jesus expelling the usurers from the Temple .
One reform of the monetary system that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the darkest corners of poverty and oppression would be the implementation of a Basic Income Guarantee .
In my book , I explain how this might work and what the results could be .
Of course , the financial plutocrats are united in their opposition to such measures .
Near the top of the list of imperatives for the financial plutocrats , after control of the world and national financial institutions and share ownership of all large industries through investment banks like Goldman Sachs , is to own and control newspapers , magazines @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the internet .
Control of the media allows the financial plutocrats to manage the entire spectrum of political opinion and to stage elections where candidates may clash over trivia while failing to challenge the underlying illegitimacy of a system the plutocrats manipulate at will .
Increasingly today , a bloc of Eurasian nations , including Russia , China , and Iran are taking steps to opt-out of this financial system , leading to the likelihood , if not an inevitability , of WWIII .
If WWII killed 20 million , what do we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care ?
Certainly , the mass media do not , perfect as they have been as instruments of state propaganda through generations of practice .
The mass media want war—as much of it as they can get , as much of the time .
I think you should expand your purview of “ evil ” to include all these elements .
Of course , you will risk your lofty position in society , and possibly more , if you do so publicly , so I don ’ t expect it .
But at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
My own view is that the geographical focal point of this evil on a global scale is the nation of Israel , created through British-sponsored Zionism as a link between East and West in their quest for world imperialist domination .
Beyond that , I also believe that this is the historical legacy of the rejection by the Talmudic Jews of the Jewish-born Messiah , Jesus Christ .
Zionism has been enabled by the apostate churches of the West , chiefly in Britain and America , particularly the so-called “ evangelicals , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
You have made a most powerful case in your books that the Messiahship of Christ was the fulfillment of the Old Testament scriptures and hence of the destiny of historic Israel .
In your book The Way of the Lord : Christian Pilgrimage Today you discuss , in a limited way , the historical consequences of Christ ’ s rejection by the vast majority of Jews who did not become Christian .
After the Roman-Jewish wars and the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E.
, these Jews ended up following @ @ @ @ @ @ @ non-scriptural Jewish religion that has lasted until today .
This is something the mainstream churches , including the Roman Catholics , are never willing to discuss .
It seems to me that the implications of your analysis are profound .
It would mean that any claims by the Talmudic Jews to be heirs to the mantle of being a “ Chosen People , ” as expressed by the Old Testament , are false .
If Jesus was the true Messiah , that mantle passed to the Christian religion that his apostles carried forward @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and perhaps legitimately so , as a separate and definable religion dating from the first and second centuries C.E .
But it would have no “ divine right ” under this interpretation either to ownership of Palestine or to a preferred position among nations .
This would not mean , of course , that modern Jews should not have wished to migrate to Palestine and make their homes there .
But they should have done so under the same constraints of respect for law and local custom as any other immigrant grouping worldwide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been the case .
It was under these constraints that so many European Jews migrated to the U.S. during the 19th and 20th centuries to become law-abiding citizens .
These migrants to the U.S. did not make war on U.S. citizens or seize their land under a pretext of racial/religious superiority as the Zionist Jews have done to the Palestinians .
There was no legitimate right of conquest for the Zionist Jews who established the state of Israel , and there is none today , no matter what the pretext .
The right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a legal principle .
Jewish suffering in World War II did not give them that right and did not suspend all international law in their favor .
I would have as much a right to demand land and reparations from Queen Elizabeth II owing to the fact that her predecessor William the Conqueror displaced my Anglo-Saxon forbears in 1066 C.E .
In the pages of Evil and the Judgment of God , you also write about the current philosophy of “ postmodernism ” as failing to answer or even address fundamental questions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with you as far as you go , but I believe you should investigate how postmodernism opens the door to today ’ s pervasive pornography and other vices .
The relativistic nature of postmodernism leaves the individual defenseless against these vices , also including drug abuse , alcoholism , gambling , and other addictions , by ignoring the real needs of the human soul or even the soul ’ s very existence .
But isn ’ t it also true that the Jews own and operate much of the industries devoted to vice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a pervasive phenomenon in Israel itself ?
Hasn ’ t the Jewish Mafia been a powerful force in the U.S. for decades , including likely involvement in the J.F.K .
assassination ?
Doesn ’ t today ’ s Russian-Jewish Mafia , based partly in Israel , spread its tentacles throughout the U.S. and elsewhere ?
Along similar lines , does it seem odd to you that the leading financial donor to the election campaign of Donald Trump in 2016 was a Jewish gambling magnate from Las Vegas ?
And don ’ t we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the evils of vice may stem at least in part from declarations of Talmudic Judaism , and many of today ’ s rabbis , asserting the right of their followers to lord it over and take advantage of the goyim as their lawful prey ?
In the political sphere , the Jewish lobby has a strong controlling interest in the entire U.S. government , including the White House and Congress .
I daresay the case may be similar in the U.K. Now and then the political puppets stage an event like the Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ creating the illusion that something real is going on .
It is truly tragi-comical to watch the politicians play-act on such phony stages as CNN , Fox News , Politico , the BBC , etc.
, while Israel and the Jewish lobby always come first in consideration and political favors .
This includes waging the regime-change wars stemming from 9/11 .
Should we not also consider whether the effect or even aim of this stew is the destruction of Christianity ?
Or at least its confinement to well-demarcated bastions , such as academia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ professors can carp at each other ad infinitum over murky theological issues while the public has no idea such discussion even exists .
I don ’ t think we are all that far from having to call such places as Oxford ’ s Wycliffe Hall , where you are now employed , “ Christian ghettoes.
” As in ghettoes from other times and places , the denizens wander outside of such places of confinement at their extreme peril .
Let a ghetto resident voice the belief , for instance , that Israel is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in service of “ the satan ” , as you call it , and we ’ ll see how long that person has a livelihood , an internet presence , or publishers for his books .
On the other hand , I do appreciate the fact that you have repudiated the message of the evangelicals , especially the American Dispensationalists , along with their imagined “ rapture , ” and I hope sincerely that at least some of the lunatics of the American-Zionist “ religious right , ” including the Robertsons and Falwells @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not hopeful about that .
I would also like to ask whether the ongoing assaults on hundreds of millions of Christians in Africa , the Middle East , and Asia , assaults you decry in your books , is fueled by resentment toward Christianity because so many of the Western churches have adopted vocal stances in favor of Israel , the pariah apartheid state ?
At the same time , I must ask whether sooner rather than later the downfall of the Serpent as prophesied by Daniel , Revelation , and Jesus himself @ @ @ @ @ @ @ believe that Israel and its Western supporters would welcome a major war in the Middle East or even worldwide , as such a war would prove so enriching to the financiers and may allow Israel to pick up more territory and influence .
But just as the two world wars of the 20th century instigated by Great Britain cost that nation its empire , another conflagration in our own time may bring more than a few surprises to the guilty parties .
I do thank you , however , for your contribution to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ indeed grateful to you and wish you the very best .
Thank you for your attention , if in fact , you see this letter .
I couldn ’ t find your email address on-line anywhere , so this attempt at open communication will have to do .
One other thing .
In the article “ Why Do They Hate….
” you give this apt quotation : “ …How was Cyrus Scofield , a lawyer without theological training , capable of publishing such a work with the prestigious Oxford University Press ?
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only a front man for a project whose real sponsor was Samuel Untermeyer , a Wall Street lawyer , Federal Reserve co-founder , devoted Zionist , and close associate of Woodrow Wilson .
As noted in chapter 7 , Untermeyer called for “ holy war ” against Germany in 1933 .
[ 1 ] ” – Laurent Guyénot Why Holy War against Germany ?
We find the answer in your February 1 article : Suppressed History : A Banned Classic with New Introduction.
” The book summary you cite takes us back to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first appeared in Germany , in the Rhineland , including Switzerland , by the early 13th century .
This influx led directly to the era of the Rhineland Mystics , which can be traced in a continuous line from the days of Meister Eckhart to today .
One of the great literary products was the Theologia Germanica , a manual of mystical practice ascribed to an anonymous Teutonic Knight from Frankfurt and dating to the mid-1300s .
The groundwork for this movement had been laid in the same region by the authors of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Templars and the Gothic builders .
All this was in contrast to the scholasticism of the High Church run out of Rome .
The movement of the Rhineland Mystics continued through Luther , Arndt , and Boehme , et .
al.
, though much of the literary output has still not been translated .
It appeared in German Pietism , some of which were transferred to America in the 18th century .
It appeared strongly in Goethe , was renewed through Goethe ’ s Italian Journey , and continued through 19th century @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their takeover of the British Empire , decided , around the time of the creation of the German Empire , to destroy Christianity once and for all .
Hence their attack on Germany , accomplished only through the takeover of the U.S. , through WWI and WWII .
This was why for Untermeyer and his ilk , WWII was a “ holy war.
” However , by this time , the center of German mysticism had been transferred to Switzerland , where it was rescued from the Zionist-engendered assault .
There it remains @ @ @ @ @ @ @ restored in Germany , with its center in the Frankfurt region .
From there it will regenerate the world after the Zionist-led attack on authentic Western civilization has played itself out .
Richard C. Cook may be contacted at [ email protected ]

Rev. N.T. Wright
Senior Research Fellow
Wycliffe Hall
Oxford University
Oxford U.K.
Open Letter from Richard C. Cook to Rev. N.T. Wright.
Rev. N.T. Wright is a former Anglican bishop and the author of numerous books on the Christian religion. He is presently a Senior Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford University, U.K.
Dear Rev. Wright:
My name is Richard C. Cook. I am a retired U.S. government analyst. Among other writings, I am the author of Challenger Revealed: An Insider’s Account of How the Reagan Administration Caused the Greatest Tragedy of the Space Age.
I am in the process of reading your many books and am deeply impressed by the depth and breadth of your knowledge. I have particularly appreciated your Paul: A Biography, your book When God Became King, and Evil and the Justice of God.
I would like to make a few comments on the latter book, Evil and the Judgment of God.
In your book, you make a very big deal of 9/11 and the “evil” it manifested, when, as you say, terrorists supposedly flew airplanes into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon.
Before commenting further, I think we can agree that such events have a historical context. Thus if we study the history of the modern world, particularly from the mid-19th century onwards, including WWI, WWII, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the destruction of Yugoslavia by NATO, and the many Middle Eastern regime-change wars since the 1980s, 9/11 may be seen to fit right in.
Many of us believe that 9/11 was, in fact, a false flag attack carried out by the intelligence services of the U.S., Israel, and Saudi Arabia to provide a pretext for the endless “War on Terror” and the ongoing control of the imperialist West by what is called the “Deep State” or, now, “the Blob.” 9/11 was not done by “Al-Qaeda” or “Osama bin Laden.” These quasi-mythical entities were largely the creation of Western intelligence and the mass media to conceal the real masterminds.
The best reliable source for authentic information on the 9/11 attacks, though not the only one, is the website for VT. I suggest you study this material in detail, particularly if you continue to lead with 9/11 as your exemplar of evil on the world stage. Otherwise, you risk undermining the credibility of the rest of your important message.
Looking at the broader themes, modern research is showing that the world wars of the 20th century, as well as the Bolshevik Revolution, were without doubt events initiated by Great Britain to take down Germany and Russia as competing powers to the British Empire. It has been documented that Great Britain and the U.S. both manipulated their desired foes through constant provocations, causing the “enemy” to fire the first shots so that the imperial bullies could look like they were taking the moral high ground.
This strategy continues at present, with the U.S., egged on by Israel, imposing “sanctions” against Iran, with the clear intent of inducing that nation to retaliate. Iran will then be destroyed. This, along with the other regime change wars, will continue to forward the agenda of making Israel the dominant power in the Middle East.
Actions by Great Britain, the world’s leading imperial power, to start a century of war were directed and implemented largely by members of British secret societies, including Freemasonic lodges headed by the British royal family, and their U.S. counterparts, including American banking and industrial oligarchs, such as Rockefeller, Schiff, and Morgan.
See particularly two books by British researchers Gerry Docherty and Jim Macgregor:
Hidden History: The Secret Origins of the First World War and Prolonging the Agony: How the Anglo-American Establishment Deliberately Extended WWI by Three-and-a-Half Years;
Also see How Britain Initiated Both World Wars by Nick Kollerstrom and Conjuring Hitler: How Britain and America made the Third Reich by Guido Giacomo Preparata; and Freedom Betrayed by former U.S. President Herbert Hoover.
On the machinations of the British lodges see The Karma of Untruthfulness by Rudolf Steiner.
Another useful book is Unnecessary War by Patrick Buchanan.
On the nature of British Freemasonry, see Darkness Visible: A Christian Appraisal of Freemasonry by Walton Hannah, which includes comments on how the Anglican Church compromised itself in regard to sanctioning this extraordinarily influential neopagan cult.
In his book Freedom Betrayed, published posthumously in 2011, Herbert Hoover described in detail how President Franklin Roosevelt armed Britain and France against Germany, then goaded Japan into attacking at Pearl Harbor, in order to engage in a world war mainly to increase U.S. business profits and employment.
It was World War II, Hoover writes, not the New Deal, that brought the U.S. out of the Great Depression. To accomplish this, Roosevelt ruthlessly stamped out dissent, mocking opponents to his war as “isolationists” and lying about their intentions. Hoover’s analysis, suppressed for 50 years, is being characterized as “revisionist” history so that it doesn’t have to be taken seriously and reckoned with by the warmongering media.
We can agree, I believe, that since World War II, the dominant role of the British Empire in the world has been taken over by the U.S. as the “Great Hegemon.” What is seldom recognized is that behind these horrible events that constitute the greater modern “holocaust” has been an ongoing worldwide economic debacle deriving largely from the “Jewish” financial system, as it has been frequently called, controlling the finances of all modern nations.
This system was perfected in its present form by the Rothschilds during the 1800s. Foremost among these was the British branch of the Rothschilds, as I am sure you well know. This system, based on casting the whole of society into perpetual debt, has diverted the tremendous productive potential of the Industrial Revolution into the hands of the bankers, particularly the hedge funds and investment banks of the City of London, Wall Street, and the big banks of other world financial centers.
The system is based on usury, which the Catholic Church had tried to outlaw during the Middle Ages. But usury became the norm over time. Martin Luther has been excoriated for publishing The Jews and Their Lies in 1543, but what people don’t realize is that his criticism was largely based on the impoverishment of communities throughout Europe through the practice of usury by Jewish lenders. The rulers of the European nations became so corrupt and dependent on the Jewish usurers that they allowed the system to gradually take over everything.
In your book, you decry the indebtedness of poor nations to the international financial system and how that system plunges millions of people even deeper into poverty. But you do not seem to appreciate enough how the system works to engender poverty and promote wars even in the developed part of the world.
All modern wars have been financed through the private banking system and its extension of credit to governments at war which then pay their debts to the financial magnates through strangling the populace with taxes and destroying individual savings through inflation. The mechanisms for all this are well-understood by the financial perpetrators and apologists, including their media minions.
In Great Britain, it was Jewish leaders who sponsored William of Orange in his invasion of England in the “Glorious Revolution” of 1688. Soon afterward the privately-owned Bank of England was set up and became the model for entrenched state-sanctioned usury from then on. Eventually, it was replicated in America through the Federal Reserve System, created and operated by Jewish financiers and their American industrialist cronies from 1913 until today.
The point I very much wish to get across to you, Rev. Wright, is that apart from the disastrous monetary system based on usury which the largely Jewish bankers foisted on Europe over a period of centuries, followed by America, is not the only way that a nation can create, or manage, money. There are other methods that have been tried at various times and places but have been choked out by the power of the money masters.
Among these methods are publicly owned and operated banking systems controlled by central governments. You can learn more about these things through organizations like the Public Banking Institute in the U.S. You can also read my own book on the subject entitled We Hold These Truths: The Hope of Monetary Reform. The inspiration for this admittedly small contribution to economic literature deriving from my own experience with the U.S. Treasury Department was the Biblical account of Jesus expelling the usurers from the Temple.
One reform of the monetary system that would transform the world and reach into the darkest corners of poverty and oppression would be the implementation of a Basic Income Guarantee. In my book, I explain how this might work and what the results could be. Of course, the financial plutocrats are united in their opposition to such measures.
Near the top of the list of imperatives for the financial plutocrats, after control of the world and national financial institutions and share ownership of all large industries through investment banks like Goldman Sachs, is to own and control newspapers, magazines, broadcast networks, and now even the internet. Control of the media allows the financial plutocrats to manage the entire spectrum of political opinion and to stage elections where candidates may clash over trivia while failing to challenge the underlying illegitimacy of a system the plutocrats manipulate at will.
Increasingly today, a bloc of Eurasian nations, including Russia, China, and Iran are taking steps to opt-out of this financial system, leading to the likelihood, if not an inevitability, of WWIII. If WWII killed 20 million, what do we expect from WWIII? Or does anyone care? Certainly, the mass media do not, perfect as they have been as instruments of state propaganda through generations of practice. The mass media want war—as much of it as they can get, as much of the time.
I think you should expand your purview of “evil” to include all these elements. Of course, you will risk your lofty position in society, and possibly more, if you do so publicly, so I don’t expect it. But at least you would be telling the truth.
My own view is that the geographical focal point of this evil on a global scale is the nation of Israel, created through British-sponsored Zionism as a link between East and West in their quest for world imperialist domination. Beyond that, I also believe that this is the historical legacy of the rejection by the Talmudic Jews of the Jewish-born Messiah, Jesus Christ. Zionism has been enabled by the apostate churches of the West, chiefly in Britain and America, particularly the so-called “evangelicals,” whose leaders have been bought off.
You have made a most powerful case in your books that the Messiahship of Christ was the fulfillment of the Old Testament scriptures and hence of the destiny of historic Israel. In your book The Way of the Lord: Christian Pilgrimage Today you discuss, in a limited way, the historical consequences of Christ’s rejection by the vast majority of Jews who did not become Christian.
After the Roman-Jewish wars and the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E., these Jews ended up following the Talmudic rabbis in creating their own non-scriptural Jewish religion that has lasted until today. This is something the mainstream churches, including the Roman Catholics, are never willing to discuss.
It seems to me that the implications of your analysis are profound. It would mean that any claims by the Talmudic Jews to be heirs to the mantle of being a “Chosen People,” as expressed by the Old Testament, are false. If Jesus was the true Messiah, that mantle passed to the Christian religion that his apostles carried forward. Talmudic Judaism may yet exist, and perhaps legitimately so, as a separate and definable religion dating from the first and second centuries C.E. But it would have no “divine right” under this interpretation either to ownership of Palestine or to a preferred position among nations.
This would not mean, of course, that modern Jews should not have wished to migrate to Palestine and make their homes there. But they should have done so under the same constraints of respect for law and local custom as any other immigrant grouping worldwide, not as terrorist interlopers as has been the case. It was under these constraints that so many European Jews migrated to the U.S. during the 19th and 20th centuries to become law-abiding citizens.
These migrants to the U.S. did not make war on U.S. citizens or seize their land under a pretext of racial/religious superiority as the Zionist Jews have done to the Palestinians. There was no legitimate right of conquest for the Zionist Jews who established the state of Israel, and there is none today, no matter what the pretext. The right of conquest no longer exists on earth as a legal principle.
Jewish suffering in World War II did not give them that right and did not suspend all international law in their favor. I would have as much a right to demand land and reparations from Queen Elizabeth II owing to the fact that her predecessor William the Conqueror displaced my Anglo-Saxon forbears in 1066 C.E.
In the pages of Evil and the Judgment of God, you also write about the current philosophy of “postmodernism” as failing to answer or even address fundamental questions of metaphysics and morality. I agree with you as far as you go, but I believe you should investigate how postmodernism opens the door to today’s pervasive pornography and other vices. The relativistic nature of postmodernism leaves the individual defenseless against these vices, also including drug abuse, alcoholism, gambling, and other addictions, by ignoring the real needs of the human soul or even the soul’s very existence.
But isn’t it also true that the Jews own and operate much of the industries devoted to vice, including human trafficking, which is a pervasive phenomenon in Israel itself? Hasn’t the Jewish Mafia been a powerful force in the U.S. for decades, including likely involvement in the J.F.K. assassination? Doesn’t today’s Russian-Jewish Mafia, based partly in Israel, spread its tentacles throughout the U.S. and elsewhere?
Along similar lines, does it seem odd to you that the leading financial donor to the election campaign of Donald Trump in 2016 was a Jewish gambling magnate from Las Vegas? And don’t we need to address the question of whether the evils of vice may stem at least in part from declarations of Talmudic Judaism, and many of today’s rabbis, asserting the right of their followers to lord it over and take advantage of the goyim as their lawful prey?
In the political sphere, the Jewish lobby has a strong controlling interest in the entire U.S. government, including the White House and Congress. I daresay the case may be similar in the U.K. Now and then the political puppets stage an event like the Trump impeachment to keep the populace distracted by creating the illusion that something real is going on. It is truly tragi-comical to watch the politicians play-act on such phony stages as CNN, Fox News, Politico, the BBC, etc., while Israel and the Jewish lobby always come first in consideration and political favors. This includes waging the regime-change wars stemming from 9/11.
Should we not also consider whether the effect or even aim of this stew is the destruction of Christianity? Or at least its confinement to well-demarcated bastions, such as academia? Within these sacred halls, the professors can carp at each other ad infinitum over murky theological issues while the public has no idea such discussion even exists.
I don’t think we are all that far from having to call such places as Oxford’s Wycliffe Hall, where you are now employed, “Christian ghettoes.” As in ghettoes from other times and places, the denizens wander outside of such places of confinement at their extreme peril. Let a ghetto resident voice the belief, for instance, that Israel is indeed driving the world to Armageddon, in service of “the satan”, as you call it, and we’ll see how long that person has a livelihood, an internet presence, or publishers for his books.
On the other hand, I do appreciate the fact that you have repudiated the message of the evangelicals, especially the American Dispensationalists, along with their imagined “rapture,” and I hope sincerely that at least some of the lunatics of the American-Zionist “religious right,” including the Robertsons and Falwells, hear you. But I am not hopeful about that. I would also like to ask whether the ongoing assaults on hundreds of millions of Christians in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, assaults you decry in your books, is fueled by resentment toward Christianity because so many of the Western churches have adopted vocal stances in favor of Israel, the pariah apartheid state?
At the same time, I must ask whether sooner rather than later the downfall of the Serpent as prophesied by Daniel, Revelation, and Jesus himself, is close at hand? I believe that Israel and its Western supporters would welcome a major war in the Middle East or even worldwide, as such a war would prove so enriching to the financiers and may allow Israel to pick up more territory and influence. But just as the two world wars of the 20th century instigated by Great Britain cost that nation its empire, another conflagration in our own time may bring more than a few surprises to the guilty parties.
I do thank you, however, for your contribution to helping true Christians prepare. I am indeed grateful to you and wish you the very best.
Thank you for your attention, if in fact, you see this letter. I couldn’t find your email address on-line anywhere, so this attempt at open communication will have to do.
One other thing. In the article “Why Do They Hate….” you give this apt quotation:
“…How was Cyrus Scofield, a lawyer without theological training, capable of publishing such a work with the prestigious Oxford University Press? The mystery has been solved: Scofield was only a front man for a project whose real sponsor was Samuel Untermeyer, a Wall Street lawyer, Federal Reserve co-founder, devoted Zionist, and close associate of Woodrow Wilson. As noted in chapter 7, Untermeyer called for “holy war” against Germany in 1933.[1]” – Laurent Guyénot
Why Holy War against Germany? We find the answer in your February 1 article: Suppressed History: A Banned Classic with New Introduction.” The book summary you cite takes us back to the days of the Teutonic Knights who first appeared in Germany, in the Rhineland, including Switzerland, by the early 13th century.
This influx led directly to the era of the Rhineland Mystics, which can be traced in a continuous line from the days of Meister Eckhart to today. One of the great literary products was the Theologia Germanica, a manual of mystical practice ascribed to an anonymous Teutonic Knight from Frankfurt and dating to the mid-1300s. The groundwork for this movement had been laid in the same region by the authors of the Grail Legends, with affinities to the Templars and the Gothic builders.
All this was in contrast to the scholasticism of the High Church run out of Rome.
The movement of the Rhineland Mystics continued through Luther, Arndt, and Boehme, et. al., though much of the literary output has still not been translated. It appeared in German Pietism, some of which were transferred to America in the 18th century. It appeared strongly in Goethe, was renewed through Goethe’s Italian Journey, and continued through 19th century German Romanticism.
The Zionists, through their takeover of the British Empire, decided, around the time of the creation of the German Empire, to destroy Christianity once and for all. Hence their attack on Germany, accomplished only through the takeover of the U.S., through WWI and WWII. This was why for Untermeyer and his ilk, WWII was a “holy war.”
However, by this time, the center of German mysticism had been transferred to Switzerland, where it was rescued from the Zionist-engendered assault. There it remains today. From there it is being restored in Germany, with its center in the Frankfurt region. From there it will regenerate the world after the Zionist-led attack on authentic Western civilization has played itself out.
Richard C. Cook may be contacted at monetaryreform@gmail.com