Okay, so the breaking news is that Republicans and Democrats are both upset that the FBI raided a Congresspersons office. What are they so upset about? Were any laws broken? I believe that in the constitution, there are laws protecting members of Congress from search/siezure, but what if they are suspected of breaking the law? What if there is a warrant?
Basically, there’s a separation of powers issue about the executive branch investigating the legislative branch and the potential for abuse.
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Basically, there’s a separation of powers issue about the executive branch investigating the legislative branch and the potential for abuse.
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Not quite. The executive branch can investigate criminal activity by the legislative branch, it’s a question of what methods are used. Note that no one is making a big deal about a raid on this guys house. It’s specifically a raid on his office that is causing a problem. That has never been done in the entire history of the US, so we’re in uncharted territory. The specific concern is whether or not this raid violates Article 1, Section 6 of the constitution:
This, btw, was the same excuse Congressman Kennedy made a few weeks ago when he was pulled over by the cops in the wee hours of the morning-- that he couldn’t be detained because he was on his way to vote in the House.
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Basically, there’s a separation of powers issue about the executive branch investigating the legislative branch and the potential for abuse.
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Yes, I understand about the seperation, but the constitution specifically states that a felony allows for the investigation. So if it is true (and it seems to be so far) that he accepted a $100,000 bribe, doesn’t this allow for the search?
IANAL, but in this case it’s the “speech or debate” clause that seems to be the issue. Note that there is “;” before that clause, which means the exceptions in the previous clause do not apply to it.
Why do I sense that the FBI will have a budget of about $8 dollars in FY 2007?
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