Contact:
Representative Betty Hall
18 Old Milford Road
Brookline, NH 03033
603-672-8712

Impeachment Resolution submitted to the New Hampshire State Democratic Party Convention Resolutions Committee for vote.

Brookline, New Hampshire — Rep. Hall submitted a resolution for consideration by the Democratic State Party Convention on May 17, 2008. The new resolution offered by Representative Hall will give the Democrats of New Hampshire a chance to support the efforts in the NH House of Representatives to remove HR24 from the table and encourage debate.

Representative Betty Hall d. Hillsborough, District 5 (Hollis, Brookline, Mason) sponsor of HR24 Petition to Commence Impeachment Procedures in the United States Congress was tabled by action of the NH State House of Representatives last Wednesday.

In 2006, a similar resolution was submitted to the Democratic Party by Representative Robert Perry d. of Strafford, District 3 and was adopted by unanimous vote by the 2006 Convention.  Since then Representative Perry and Representative Hall have continued to support efforts to start impeachment procedures in the United States Congress.

The Resolution Committee of the NH Democratic Party will hold a Public hearing on the resolutions at the NHDP Headquarters on 2 1/2  Beacon St., Concord, NH 03301 on May 6th at 7 pm. There will be an opportunity to renew support for resolutions favored by the previous conventions as were the Iraq war resolution and others.

NH House Rules and Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure published by the National Conference of State Legislatures provide the references.

Democrat Dennis Kucinich's proposal to Impeach Vice President Cheney HR 799 was introduced on a privileged motion last year in the United States Congress. An effort to table this motion in Congress (where a tabling motion effectively kills a Resolution) was defeated, with the support of 189 Republicans and 70 Democrats including Congresswoman Carol Shea Porter and Congressman Paul Hodes of NH. It was then  sent to the Judiciary Committee of the United States House.   No action has been taken by Chairman Conyers of the US House Judiciary Committee. Speaker Nancy Pelosi's opposition to impeachment is controversial within her own party.

Unlike The United States Congress, NH House rules permit removing a Bill or Resolution which has been put on the table by a majority vote, to be removed from the table by a majority vote.  Action can then be continued subject to exactly the same requirements as when it was temporarily set aside by the motion to table. If a deadline has passed while it was on the table, then that deadline would require a suspension of the rules in order for the bill or resolution to proceed just as with any bill. This is often misunderstood because the deadlines do require a 2/3 vote majority to suspend.  But since HR24 is not subject to a deadline and does not have to be sent to the Senate, any member can make a motion to take it off the table at any time right up to the end of the session.

HR24 will require just a majority of those present and voting when it is brought up. It is just resting while Representatives can listen to more input from constituents and gather a majority.