WASHINGTON, DC -- The Libertarian Party has become America's first political party to officially demand the impeachment of President Clinton.  On Wednesday, the party sent letters to House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, formally requesting that the "United States House begin Articles of Impeachment" against Clinton and Vice President Gore.

      The action followed the party's national convention in Washington, DC, where delegates approved a resolution urging Clinton's impeachment.

       Passed overwhelmingly by voice vote on July 5, the motion called for Clinton and Gore to be removed from office for "violation of their oath of office, specifically their failure to uphold and defend the United States Constitution."

       In the letter to Gingrich and Gephardt, the party's National Director Ron Crickenberger wrote: "Given their scandalously bad record of protecting the basic civil and economic liberties of the American people, it is imperative that the United States House begin Articles of Impeachment against President Clinton and Vice President Gore."   

       The party called for impeachment hearings to begin immediately.

       "Clinton has the worst record on civil liberties since Richard Nixon, and the worst record on economic issues since Fidel Castro," explained Crickenberger. "What he's done to the Constitution should be classified as a hate crime. That's why he deserves to be impeached."

       Crickenberger noted in the letter that the party's action was not motivated by the current sex-and-lies investigation of the president, which focuses on whether Clinton lied about a sexual relationship with a White House intern.

      "This impeachment request has nothing to do with the ongoing investigation of President Clinton by Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr," he wrote. "We are making this request based solely on the violations of the Constitution that have been perpetrated by President Clinton and Vice President Gore during the time they have been in office."

      The party documented a long list of constitutional violations in the letter, noting that Clinton and Gore: 

* Violated the First Amendment by supporting censorship of the Internet and by demanding a ban on commercial advertising by cigarette companies.
* Violated the Second Amendment by signing the Brady Bill and by arbitrarily banning so-called "assault weapons."
* Violated the Fourth Amendment by restricting the right of Americans to employ encryption technology to prevent government spying on electronic communications and by supporting legislation that will mandate national ID cards with biometric identifiers, such as fingerprints.
* Violated the Fifth Amendment by supporting and expanding the power of the federal government to seize private property without compensation under asset forfeiture laws and by signing "anti-terrorism" legislation that sharply curtailed the right of habeas corpus.
* Violated the Ninth and Tenth Amendments -- which reserve all power not specifically delegated to the federal government to the states and to the people -- by attempting to put America's health care industry under federal control and by numerous other executive actions and decrees.
     
"Our members are tired of watching a president -- who put his hand on the Bible and swore to uphold the Constitution -- spend his entire term of office ignoring, abusing, and violating the guiding document of this nation," said Crickenberger. "Based on his record as president, Clinton deserves nothing better than impeachment."