Bills of attainder and why the ‘defund ACORN’ may hurt groups you like
This post is not about ACORN. I mention that because really, it isn’t. Hell, I don’t think the ‘defund ACORN bill is about ACORN but that’s also another topic. This post is about ‘bills of attainder.’ If you don’t know what they are, they are bills that signal out one group or individual for punishment. Article I Section 9 of the US Constitution bans them. This was not something, like the Bill of Rights, that was added later. The point is those groups/people should be prosecuted in the legal system. It says that people or organizations cannot be punished for political reasons.
The problem with the ‘defund ACORN’ then becomes, who will their next target be? Let’s take a wild flight of fancy and suppose that liberals take totally control of Congress . These aren’t your garden variety liberals, they make me look like Rush. They hate the NRA (not signaling them out, it’s the only group I can think of right now) so they ban funding. While the group in question may or may not get money from the feds, it hurts.
Article I Section 9 prohibits any legislation that signals out a group for punishment, the idea being that the duty of punishments should be left to the judicial branch. People and organizations should be prosecuted judicially not persecuted legislatively. Moreover, the judicial process has remedies for those who commit crimes while the legislative branch does not.
Bill of attainder – definition: A legislative act that singles out an individual or group for punishment without a trial.
Bottom line: any bill that singles out one group is bad for anyone who works for any group. You are all about the Christian Coalition, this bill makes it ok to go after you, too. Now, legally, precedent means something . That provides the basis for other findings. And this all begs the question: why would Congress pass a bill that is unconstitutional? That is a very good question. The legislative branch makes laws and the judicial makes sure that they comply with the Constitution. If you are all – why bother passing something you know violates the Constitution? – I am right there with you. Having said that, this is the reason we have the ‘checks and balances’ system we have. Congress passes laws and the parliamentarian is there to make sure they abide by the rules of the House and Senate, not meet Constitutional muster. That’s not as bad as it sounds. There is a reason it is hard to get a job at the Supreme Court. (Not only ON but also AT) I talked about this with a Senate staffer who handles judiciary committee issues and he explained to me that Congress doesn’t have to make sure its bills are Constitutional because it is not their job. The legislative branch makes laws, the judicial branch interprets them and the executive enforces them.
The problem them becomes when un-Constitutional laws pass and become law. You may think this is about liberal organizations but DC v Heller was the first case the NRA won based on the Second Amendment.
There’s a poem:
First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist; Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist; Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist; Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew; Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me." Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984)
I have been pretty upfront about where I am politically; I am a liberal Democrat. I find it ironic that some of the same people who claim to love our Constitution are willing to bypass it when politically advantageous to them. I am not talking about the Republicans in Congress who support this bill – it is not their job to adhere to it when writing legislation though I think it’s a different matter all together when they campaign with a pro-Constitution and pro-‘Defund ACORN’ message because that message is hypocracy, but the bandwagon jumpers who don’t see the far reaching implications of this bill. There are other ways to defund ACORN without violating the Constitution.
Does anyone here watch C-Span? No? Beuller? Beuller?
