Joining a list of liberal luminaries, including Noam Chomsky and George McGovern, Salt Lake City's outgoing mayor submitted a letter Friday that calls on the House Judiciary Committee to investigate the Bush administration for abuses of power.

The letter, signed by 18 political and cultural figures, asks House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., to hold hearings on alleged violations of the law under President Bush that include kidnapping and torture, warrantless wiretapping, a war of aggression against Iraq and disseminating false propaganda to deceive the American people.

It came on Anderson's last full day in office. Mayor-elect Ralph Becker will be sworn in Monday.

"To embrace the opportunity to discover and disclose the truth, and to provide for the sort of accountability, transparency and openness due to any democratic people," the letter reads, "will be an important step toward a national recommitment to the rule of law, a renewal of international respect and a return to the national values we Americans have always cherished for ourselves and our posterity."

The letter suggests a congressional inquiry is critical, given that the courts are unlikely to act.

"Because the courts are not providing a means of disclosing or holding the Bush administration accountable for serious violations of the law, it is particularly essential that Congress vigorously assume its constitutional prerogative and duty to thoroughly investigate and disclose the truth about the abuses of power and excesses of President Bush, Vice President [Dick] Cheney and others in the administration, all of which have caused extreme damage to our country," the letter continues.

Misconduct allegations also include the disappearance of people throughout the world, confinement of U.S. citizens without charges or legal recourse, and disregard of federal statutory laws.

Ralph Nader, Daniel Ellsberg, Harry Belafonte, Blase and Theresa Bonpane, Ramsey Clark, Mimi Kennedy, Andy Jacobs Jr., Paul Findley, Kevin Zeese, John Nichols, Tim Carpenter, James Abourezk, Marcus Raskin and Jonathan Kozol round out the list of signatories. Anderson has called for the impeachment of Bush and Cheney at protests in Utah's capital and the nation's capital.

djensen@sltrib.com