Yeah, But We're <i>Congress</i>
By Leon H Wolf Posted in Republicans — Comments (19) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Any person in America, especially a public official, who got caught on tape taking 100 large in bribes, would expect to have his office raided by the FBI without the courtesy of a warning phone call. The joint statement just released by Hastert and Pelosi explains to the American people, "This is different. We're Congress."
Joint Statement from Speaker Hastert
and Minority Leader Pelosi
(Washington, D.C.) Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) issued the following statement regarding the Federal Bureau of Investigation's search of a Congressional office:
"No person is above the law, neither the one being investigated nor those conducting the investigation.
"The Justice Department was wrong to seize records from Congressman Jefferson's office in violation of the Constitutional principle of Separation of Powers, the Speech or Debate Clause of the Constitution, and the practice of the last 219 years. These constitutional principles were not designed by the Founding Fathers to place anyone above the law. Rather, they were designed to protect the Congress and the American people from abuses of power, and those principles deserve to be vigorously defended.
"Accordingly, the Justice Department must immediately return the papers it unconstitutionally seized. Once that is done, Congressman Jefferson can and should fully cooperate with the Justice Department's efforts, consistent with his constitutional rights.
"In addition, the Justice Department must immediately cease any further review of the documents it unconstitutionally seized, ensure that those who have reviewed the documents do not divulge their contents to the investigators, and move in Court to vitiate the search warrant."
Right now, I'm utterly unconcerned with who has the right of the legal argument here - I'm rather confident that the Judicial Branch is going to look disfavorably on Hastert's claim, but that's not the point. What *IS* the point is that this is the kind of institutional arrogance that leads to mass election waves.
Someone needs to pull Hastert away from the media ASAP.
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Yeah, But We're <i>Congress</i> 19 Comments (0 topical, 19 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
arrests of Congressmen. That clearly implies the gathering of evidence from Congressional members under the normal rule of law.
For Hastert to join with the sleazebag Pelosi, who was fined for ethical lapses, is beyond the pale.
I am &%^$%^&!!! outraged, and I am not going to take it.
If a Congressman thinks he can pollute the Halls of Congress by hiding sceot-free behind his 'privelege' and obstruct a felony investigation, he has another thing coming.
Hastert ahs been had by the dems. They have nothing to lose with this, and everything to gain.
What a maroon.
in the first semester of my junior year as an undergrad during the Fall of 1994; one of my roommates was a Korean who had been adopted by a Texas family - wore the hats and chewed tobacco, too - and had embraced their stalwart Republican loyalties. When the election returns were reported, and we realized that a seismic shift had occurred, we ran around the parking lot of our dorm spraying champagne and shouting like lunatics, and we are unashamed.
Now, I am ashamed.
According to Bob Novak, Hastert pitched a fit when his buddy Porter Goss got the axe. Regardless of your view of Mr. Goss's tenure, it is beyond dispute that the DCI serves at the President's pleasure, whether Fat Denny likes it or not.
As I wrote on another thread, Hastert is going to find himself "de-Foley-ated" if he and his so-called "majority" keep this up. To defend institutional prerogative above all else, including against the judiciary, is the highest arrogance. This attitude has trickled down into such public-opinion-be-damned items as the Senate's immigration bill and the continued lusty embrace of earmarks by members in both houses.
you can arrest a Senator. it is only when Congress is in session or to and from a vote. Now, since congress is in session all of this month:
http://thomas.loc.gov/home/ds/h1092.html
they can arrest anyone on a misdemeanor on the weekend, tomorrow, or next month. But this is a MOOT POINT since:
a. carrying out a warrant is NOT an arrest and not in the Contitution and,
b. like you mention, this is all in the process of investigating a felony anyway so, if there are going to be any arrests, it would be a-ok.
I, like you, am appalled.
to pull him from the media...the horses are, as they say, out of the barn. Like others here and elsewhere I am...I don't know if ashamed is right, or disgusted, or bewildered...maybe all of the above.
We have mostly agreed here in recent weeks that the Dems are still a worse bet than the repubs and we HAVE to vote and we HAVE to keep the Dems out of power...and I will do my duty, but sheesh...are we all REALLY SURE we'd be better off?
I'm thinking a vote for my horse would serve me better...she does what I tell her to do, and she needs ME to see to it that she is taken care of and compensated for her efforts on the trail...doing the work of MY bidding under saddle...
hmmm, do they have horse stalls in that newly raided congressional building?
Let's get rid of this phrase quick before someone here gets some crazy idea of de-Foley-ating a certain Foley from this site...;0)
So Congress can investigate the Executive Branch all they want but not the other way around?
And I'm surprised I haven't already been scolded for doing so.
But my broken-record refrain is as follows: money is the oxygen of politics, so I believe the way to get through the Hastertian force field of arrogance and obstinacy is by altering political contributions. And, for my money, no one is currently doing a better job than the Club for Growth.
I have these pretty green sheets of peel-off stickers saying "My Congressional contributions will be made through the Club for Growth," and giving the phone and web contact info, as if they didn't know it. The two or three direct mail national Republican fund-raising appeals that I receive daily are each dutifully "stickered" and returned in the BRC envelop routinely provided. Heck, I'd even pay for the stamp since the little tingle of satisfaction I get by making this point to people like Dennis Hastert is easily worth 39 cents.
Something about cake and eating it too comes to mind ;-)
-Sorry for the outright plagiarism Leon!-
On the contrary, such displays of idiocy remind me why I cannot spend my life sitting on the sidelines of the political arena.
Now, people like Hastert and Gingrich, those are the ones who should feel ashamed.
has done on immigration--displayed an utter contempt for the wishes of the American people.
There is no constitutional argument for the Speaker's position--none. You have nailed the logic here, Leon: "We're Congress. Who do you think you are?"
Up until now I have blown off the 1994 analogy due to the economy. I'm not so sure any longer. It is time to mitigate losses, not focus on successes. This isn't a good place to be before Memorial Day weekend.
how this plays in to the public perception of just how detached from reality our lawmakers are...
My God, you just can't make up how bad this looks. Some policy adviser needs to have a serious "come to Jesus" meeting with Hastert.
Vote Democrat?
I suspect that that is the attitude behind much of their misbehavior.
This is a "straw that breaks the camel's back" issue for many. I think many people will vote Democrat and enough others will stay home because they see the arrogance permeating both parties.
I believe Denny just effectively handed the title of Speaker to his minority party counterpart.
...when you find yourself in a hole? What was that?
Oh yea, I remember now.
Stop f-ing digging.
Speaker Hastert, for the love of all that is good, I beg you:
Please. Shut. Up. Now.
That is all.
going to ask these two bozos what specific clause of the Constitution, not these sweeping, grandstanding generalizations, states that you may not execute a search warrant on a congressman's office? Or is Hastert now a proponent of the "living constitution"?
"...is Hastert now a proponent of the "living constitution"?..."
He'd better be a proponent of a "Living Will", because his speakership is on life support.
...and you're not. So shaddup.
Seriously, this thing reads like a PJ O'Rourke parody of Congress.