Washington  - A congressional hearing Friday heard from legislators calling for the impeachment of US President George W Bush.

Though there is no chance of impeachment proceedings against Bush ever being brought to a vote, the House of Representatives debate was held in response to calls from a former Democratic presidential candidate, Dennis Kucinich.

Kucinich and some other Democrats have charged that Bush has committed unconstitutional "high crimes and misdemeanors" that justify relieving him of the presidency, including manipulating intelligence in the run-up to the war in Iraq, authorizing torture of prisoners and ignoring congressional oversight powers.

"Faced with this litany of wrongful actions, I am convinced that the most appropriate response to this unprecedented behavior is to hold hearings for impeachment," Democratic congressman Robert Wexler told the hearing of the Judiciary Committee.

Republicans derided the hearing as a waste of time, pointing out that even the Democratic leadership in Congress said it has no intention of seeking Bush's impeachment. (dpa)