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.
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.
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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