Video: Senator Gravel and Rep. McKinney at Massachusetts 9/11 Ballot Initiative Press Conference

Rep. Cynthia McKinney at the 9/11 Ballot Initiative Press Conference
On the steps of the Massachusetts State House—9/13/11
YouTube <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioACnrPexQI>

Senator  Mike Gravel at the 9/11 Ballot Initiative Press Conference
On the steps of the Massachusetts State House—9/13/11
YouTube <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2n3cKua07-0>

Along with Massachusetts 9/11 truth activists, Senator Mike Gravel—
a native of Massachusetts—launched our campaign for a 2012 ballot initiative
which seeks the creation of a Citizens’ 9/11 Commission, by holding a press
conference held on September 13, 2011 on the steps of the Massachusetts
State House in Boston. The ballot question was submitted in August and was
certified by Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley on September 7.
According to the Massachusetts initiative law, supporters must collect a
minimum of nearly 70,000 valid signatures from registered voters by early
December of 2011.

Gravel will be working closely with the statewide alliance to create
awareness of the initiative. The Senator will personally head the funding
effort, which will be a worldwide campaign.

Senator Gravel will be supported in the state by a coalition of
Massachusetts 9/11 advocacy groups and local concerned citizens led by Rich
McCampbell, a Cambridge-based biotech engineer, and Rich Aucoin, former
Libertarian candidate for lieutenant governor who has worked in senior
positions in three previous initiative campaigns. The group’s slogan is
“9/11—Never Forget.”

If the 9-11cc petition campaign succeeds in getting its measure on the
Massachusetts ballot, and if it is approved by Massachusetts voters in
November of 2012, the primary work of the “Citizens’ 9/11 Investigation
Commission,” once it is funded and seated, will be to engage in a fair and
impartial investigation of the circumstances of the attacks of September 11,
2001.

The Commission, supported by its staff, will call or subpoena witnesses and
hold evidentiary hearings under oath. It will also be empowered to inquire
into events leading up to 9/11, as well as those occurring in its aftermath,
and will re-examine the findings of any previous investigations.

The Commission established by the initiative law will consist of at least 15
members. Commissioners will be selected by the Citizens’ 9/11 Commission
Campaign steering committee from a screened list of nominations submitted by
the public and also from among its own internally compiled list of
distinguished citizens. The newly seated commissioners will then elect an
executive director who will hire staff. The final report on the Commission’s
findings, due no later than January 1, 2015, can be used by a state or
federal prosecutor to issue indictments if and when appropriate.

“The previous 9/11 Commission report,” noted Aucoin, “did not hold any U.S.
government officials responsible for possible negligence or for intended or
unintended missteps that led to the events of 9/11. Well-established rules
of evidence were never applied to the original Commission’s finding, which
alleged that Osama bin Laden and a list of co-conspirators committed the
crimes. The intent of our approach, by contrast, is to hold all parties to
this tragedy accountable under the criminal laws of the State of
Massachusetts or the laws of any other state that joins our effort.”

Notably, other states and even cities and towns may enter into a
“joint-powers’ agreement with Massachusetts if the initiative law passes.
The authorized powers of the new commission can be extended to any state,
city or town that enters into this agreement for cooperation. “The Citizens’
9/11 Investigation Commission created by the Massachusetts law may exercise
all investigatory powers of each state that has entered into the joint
powers agreement,” explained Gravel, “including but not limited to the power
of subpoena in that state and the power to take testimony under oath.”

Using several different state initiative laws to create one citizens’
commission, thereby creating a de facto national effort, is without
precedent, but has already been legally accepted in principle by the offices
of legislative counsel of the states of California and Oregon. “The law now
submitted to Massachusetts,” said Gravel, “was in fact drafted by me in
cooperation with Oregon’s State Office of Legislative Counsel. I then
slightly altered it for introduction in Massachusetts. We will file the
Oregon document shortly. Our intent is to keep the Oregon and Massachusetts
texts—and that of any other state initiative that we file—as similar as
possible.”

Massachusetts Media Contact: Rich Aucoin 781-956-6013
RichAucoin@comcast.net