If this is a crime, we're all in trouble ...

[BlackShanglan]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The House Judiciary Committee voted Wednesday to cite two White House aides -- one current, one former -- for contempt of Congress, another step toward a constitutional showdown between the Democratic-controlled Congress and the Bush administration.

"Contempt of Congress" is a crime? They're going to have to arrest most of the country. Perhaps they might alternatively try acting a little less ... contemptible?

 

[Zeb_Carter]

*snicker* *snerk*

 

[S-Des]

"Contempt of Congress" is a crime? They're going to have to arrest most of the country. Perhaps they might alternatively try acting a little less ... contemptible?

I'm not saying a word I can't afford the lawyer's fees

 

[rgraham666]

Holding Congress in contempt is one thing.

Acting in contempt is another.

Could you post what actions these aides did that caused them to be charged?

 

[BlackShanglan]

Holding Congress in contempt is one thing.

Acting in contempt is another.

Could you post what actions these aides did that caused them to be charged?

There's the story link, Rob:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/07/25/house.contempt/index.html

I think the nuts and bolts of it are here:

The committee voted 22-17 along party lines to approve a report calling for contempt citations against former White House counsel Harriet Miers and White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten for failing to comply with subpoenas issued in the investigation into the firings of eight U.S. attorneys last year.

Of course I do agree with you, really, and in this case I think that the refusal to comply has no good reason behind it. It was just difficult not to smile at the phrase "contempt of Congress."

 

[rgraham666]

Ah. I see. So hard to transmit nuance over the internet.

I got a good laugh out of this whine.

"What you have right now is partisanship on Capitol Hill that quite often boils down to insults, insinuations, inquisitions and investigations rather than pursuing the normal business of trying to pass major pieces of legislation, such as appropriations bills," Snow said.

Um, why is it when one side does it, it's OK. But when the other side it's not.

Humans.

 

[glynndah]

"What you have right now is partisanship on Capitol Hill that quite often boils down to insults, insinuations, inquisitions and investigations rather than pursuing the normal business of trying to pass major pieces of legislation, such as appropriations bills," Snow said.



But I do like the alliteration he's got going there.

I might be inclined to add idiocy to the mix.

 

[Guest]

This is like that quote -

If 'pro' is the opposite of 'con' what is the opposite of 'progress'?

 

[BlackShanglan]

"What you have right now is partisanship on Capitol Hill that quite often boils down to insults, insinuations, inquisitions and investigations rather than pursuing the normal business of trying to pass major pieces of legislation, such as appropriations bills," Snow said.

Sorry, Mr. Snow, but ... were you just complaining that there were investigations rather than "business as usual"?

The resounding silence from the House Ethics Committee tells us one clear thing: they're all in it up to their necks, and the one thing no one in either party wants is careful investigations (by anyone other than Congress itself) into what passes for "business as usual." Witness the spectacular levels of weaseling on the new earmark responsibility initiatives. There's nothing a politician hates more than a clear, precise accounting of how he's been spending his time and taxpayers' dollars.

 

[Pure]

a little info

Contempt of Congress

From Wex, everyone's resource for law learning

Definition

Congress has the authority to hold a person in contempt if the person's conduct or action obstructs the proceedings of Congress or, more usually, an inquiry by a committee of Congress.

Contempt of Congress is defined in statute, 2 U.S.C.A. § 192, enacted in 1938, which states that any person who is summoned before Congress who "willfully makes default, or who, having appeared, refuses to answer any question pertinent to the question under inquiry" shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a maximum $1,000 fine and 12 month imprisonment.

Before a Congressional witness may be convicted of contempt, it must be established that the matter under investigation is a subject which Congress has constitutional power to legislate.

Generally, the same Constitutional rights against self-incrimination that apply in a judicial setting apply when one is testifying before Congress.

Caselaw
Quinn v. U.S., 349 U.S. 155, 75 S. Ct. 668, 99 L. Ed. 964, 51 A.L.R.2d 1157 (1955).
Fields v. U.S., 164 F.2d 97 (App. D.C. 1947).
Retrieved from "http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/index.php/Contempt_of_Congress"
This page has been accessed 9554 times. This page was last modified 20:20, 22 Dec 2005 by Mark Gribben. [0 watching user/s] Content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License.

 

[Liar]

This is like that quote -

If 'pro' is the opposite of 'con' what is the opposite of 'progress'?

Well, at least then we know what the opposite of prostitution is.

Whatever that's supposed to mean.

 

[Guest]

Well, at least then we know what the opposite of prostitution is.

Whatever that's supposed to mean.

This guy probably knows.

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b318/sweetsubsarahh/bushLiberty.jpg

 

[Liar]

This guy probably knows.[/IMG]

Well, he certainly has been whoring it out a bit.

 

[Night_Jasmine]

Washington was right (I believe it was him) when he said that going to partisan approach to politics is not the right thing to do.

THe problem with politicians - they all live in big houses, drive fancy cars, and have no real clue as to what life really is. Meh..no wonder I want to immigrate somewhere else. lol

 

[jomar]

So the wind's blowing that way today, eh?

 

[Lee Chambers]

This guy probably knows.

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b318/sweetsubsarahh/bushLiberty.jpg

Christ, Sarah, that's just fucking creepy LOL

 

[Guest]

Christ, Sarah, that's just fucking creepy LOL

Especially as it's true.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

Congress's approval rating has sunk to an average of 25%. One recent Gallup poll reported only 14% of Americans profess confidence in that institution. The numbers make even Bush look good, an extraordinary achievement.

 

[neonlyte]

Um, why is it when one side does it, it's OK. But when the other side it's not.

Humans.

It's my ball and I say you can't do that!

Hmmm... we are boiling toward a similar state here. The Portuguese government has recently passed a law allowing abortion, the Madeira 'republic' has decided it doesn't want to allow abortion despite the law being approved in an assembly containing their elected delegates. The Prime Minister, on a TV debate yesterday, silenced the Madeirense critics by asking them if they were going to disregard all laws passed by the goverment... or just the ones they don't like.

 

[BlackShanglan]

I'm not a great fan of Lou Dobbs, but I had to agree with him on one recent conclusion to an editorial (rough paraphrase):

"A legislature that is utterly without respect for the president; a president who holds the legislature in contempt; for once, it looks like they're both right."

That was around about the time our lawmakers were demonstrating that that they were unable to reach a decision on whether or not to debate a bill that had no material affect on anything anyway.