WASHINGTON – Rep. Dennis Kucinich introduced three articles of impeachment against Dick Cheney on Tuesday, saying the vice president lied to America to get into a war in Iraq.
Kucinich, a 2008 presidential candidate, said Cheney misled the nation about Iraq's having weapons of mass destruction; he had been deceitful about a nexus between Iraq and Al Qaeda and was being aggressive toward Iran "absent any real threat" from the Islamic Republic.
Cheney "purposely altered intelligence gathering to justify the use of the Armed Forces in Iraq in a manner damaging to national security," the first article reads. The vice president also is accused of using the "intelligence process to deceive citizens and Congress about the tie between Iraq and Al Qaeda in a manner damaging to the United States."
The Ohio Democrat said he hadn't discussed his articles of impeachment with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi or other Democratic leaders but "has the support of millions of Americans."
In fact, Kucinich's proposal comes ahead of a series of protests this weekend calling for the impeachment of both Bush and Cheney. Hundreds of delegates to this Saturday's California Democratic Convention in San Diego are expected to introduce their own impeachment resolution against the president and vice president, said Jacob Park, national coordinator for the April 28 action.
The Vermont Senate last Friday also approved impeachment charges against Cheney on a 16-9 vote.
Asked why he hadn't gone after Bush with impeachment articles, Kucinich called it a practical problem: If Bush is removed from office, then Cheney is put in his place and removing him would require two impeachments. He did, however, call his effort to impeach Cheney a starting point.
Kucinich hasn't yet won any co-sponsors for his articles, but said he encourages other congressional members to read the charges.
"This is something that members have to consider before they sign on," Kucinich, a 2008 Democratic presidential candidate, told FOX News.
Republicans dismiss the impeachment calls as a political stunt and say Kucinich hasn't got a case.
“There are two things that happen in Washington, D.C. — public policy and politics. And for some Democrats to call for the vice president to be impeached, I think is nothing but pure politics. We’ve got serious work to do on behalf of the American people and we ought to get about it,” said House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio.
FOX News' Jim Mills and Molly Hooper contributed to this report.