AmSpec: Hastert must go
posted at 12:36 pm on May 31, 2006 by Allahpundit
Quin Hillyer finds a forlorn, tattered copy of the Contract With America and launches an attack from the right. Tony Blankley doesn’t go quite as far, but he does float a plausible theory about why Hastert made such a stink about the FBI raid on William Jefferson’s office. Background from Bob Novak.
Speaking of stink, Sensenbrenner’s threatening to draft a bill that would limit the DOJ’s powers to investigate members of Congress. On that point, see the first article of the Contract With America. See also Dana Milbank’s report on the hearings being held on the Jefferson raid, which Milbank uses to maximum left-wing effect. Exclaims Darrell Issa excitedly, “We have the power to impeach the attorney general!”
Give them a few days and they’ll crack 20. Meanwhile, the DOJ is pushing back.
Update: Andy McCarthy’s disgust bubbles over:
Part of the idea behind giving Congress speech-and-debate protection from the executive branch and the courts is the notion—perhaps now a quaint notion—that Congress will be motivated, literally, to keep its own house in order.
So what has congressional leadership done lo these ten months—while all the searches and subpoenas and guilty pleas ensued—to deal with Jefferson? The leaders have had a lot to say about separation of powers since the office search. But separation of powers is about being trusted to keep your own side of the street clean. What have they done about that?
Blowback
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Hastert was handed an excellent rebuttle to the Dems accusations of a Republican controlled culture of corruption; and what does he want to do? Give all the evidence back. Hastert wants checks on abuses and felonies in D.C.; just not where Congress is concerned. Putting felons in jail is something we teach our two year olds; so I find all this fairly rediculous. The American people should thank all the politicians for the controversies and divisions that have come to a head over that last couple of years. It is allowing the voters to see the true colors of the “people” that run our country. Is sad to see that the soveriegnty of Congress trumps the rule of law.
Cary on May 31, 2006 at 12:58 PM
I get this “Winning the Future with Newt Gingrich” email occasionally and he had a pretty good explanation of why these guys are upset about raiding the congressional *office*. Let’s imagine Hillary wins the presidency ’08, (hush, hush, we’re just imagining here…)
She begins doing all sorts of crazy unscrupulous things like mandating government healthcare for all the proletariat and bringing the troops home to keep the citizens in check…
Luckily, some conservatives are working against her in the congressional office. She catches on and sends the FBI to raid the offices, throws the conservative congresspeople in the gulag, and continues with her re-education camps uh, I mean, school programs and domino by domino, topples the US we know.
Right now, the congressional offices are somehow off-limits to the FBI (not sure if it’s law or precedent) and by changing the precendent, I guess we could be hurting our own cause should the unthinkable (Hillary in office, or McCain, or Kerry, or Gore) happen.
Knock me into line if I’m wrong on this one…
NTWR on May 31, 2006 at 1:09 PM
Listening to these loathsome windbags whining about their prerogatives and their threats to draft legislation to ensure them is more than a person should have to bear. I have already written my representative and told him to disavow this nonsense or expect to lose my support and that of every other right thinking American. I urge other Hot Air readers to do likewise.
student on May 31, 2006 at 1:16 PM
Come on, guys, Hastert believes he is doing something great here. Something that is as great as Hillary trying to hold onto Bill, as hard as Ted Kennedy trying not to drive to close to another bridge, especially when there is a girl sitting beside him.
Look here, Hastert is not defending himself. He is so selfless( or lost, in other words). He is just hoping for some TLC from his Democratic peers.
If some of you be kind enough to buy him a nice little kitty he may be able to stop behaving like some one with Down Syndrome.
Easy87us
easy87us on May 31, 2006 at 1:18 PM
NTWR says: “Right now, the congressional offices are somehow off-limits to the FBI (not sure if it’s law or precedent)”
Fred Barnes made a good point the other night on Special Report with Brit Hume. He said that he hasn’t ever had his office raided either, but that certainly doesn’t mean that it never can be.
More generally, all this talk about the separation of powers appears misplaced. The executive branch did NOT just raid Jefferson’s office willy nilly. They obtained a warrant from a federal judge and then exercised extraordinary care to respect the spirit of the speech or debate clause. The only “precedent” being set here is that congressmen are not above the law.
student on May 31, 2006 at 1:26 PM
NTWR, is “Winning the Future with Newt Gingrich” a newletter? Do you have a link to it?
Dread Pirate Roberts VI on May 31, 2006 at 1:31 PM
These crooked congress critters are just trying to protect their placce to hide evidence of crimes of their own.
Duty, Honor, Country
(in THAT order)
Rowane
Rowane on May 31, 2006 at 1:34 PM
OK, I’m link-illiterate so here’s where you can sign up for the newsletter. The part I’m talking about isn’t on the website, it’s in the newsletter at the bottom in the “ask Newt” section that you get through email. http://www.humaneventsonline.com/winningthefuture.php
this is the part I was referring to…Newt says:
“The answer is at the heart of the constitutional separation of powers. An Executive Branch-directed raid on Legislative Branch offices — even with a judicial warrant — is fundamentally different because, unlike a home or private office, a Legislative Branch office serves governmental duties that were designed to be constitutionally independent from — and in some cases, in opposition to — the powers of the Executive Branch.
Moreover, the raid flies in the face of a 200-year procedure for the Executive Branch to request documents from the Legislative Branch. ”
Is this just spin?
NTWR on May 31, 2006 at 1:47 PM
If Hastert thinks he is doing something great I doubt ANYONE who is fed up with crooked, lying, and cheating, politicians will agree with him. Since that’s about 95% of the honest God fearing people left in this Country, I wonder who he thinks is going to cheer him on. The government makes a tax system that is so screwed up that they can’t even explain it, and then they send the IRS after hard working American’s to scare the Nation into compliance, but people in Congress hiding hundreds of thousands of illegally obtained dollars need “protected” from the D.O.J.??? I got to be missing something in all this. If not, then apparently Hastert’s time in ofnice needs to become history.
NRA4Freedom on May 31, 2006 at 2:28 PM
Thanks found it under http://www.newt.org. As for Newt’s defense, if I’m not mistaken the information was subpoenaed but the subpoena was ignored and while the FBI was searching in his Fridge, William Jefferson Clinton (sorry) was destroying evidence in his office.
Now if the House Leadership was a little more aggressive in policing its members or if, and I’ll be called a bigot for this, the congressman in question had been white, perhaps the leadership would have moved quicker.
Than again, Harry and John (the two white guys in our story) were too busy attending the fights to notice was was going on! Oh I’m sorry! Johnny boy reimbursed whomever for the $1400 tickets. Just like we all do…I mean we go to the event first and then pay for it later! Clean da House!
Dread Pirate Roberts VI on May 31, 2006 at 2:30 PM
The Executive Branch is taking all the heat here for “attacking” the Legislative Branch, but what about the search warrant duly executed and signed by a member of the Judicial Branch? As for the 200-year tradition of the Legislative Branch being asked to produce documents, Jefferson has been ignoring a subpoena for months which did specifically ask him to produce the documents in question.
The FBI should certainly keep a list of the members of Congress who protest the loudest. These are the ones who likely have some secret which could be uncovered in a future “attack” seeking to enforce some silly law enacted by the very same people who now claim to be exempt from such enforcement.
DJ Dubya on May 31, 2006 at 2:33 PM
If this gang in the White House and Congress had (D) after their names, conservatives would be clamoring to toss the bums out and vote in fiscally-responsible, security-minded representation. But since they’re “less bad” than the Democrats, principle goes out the window in favor of selfish faux-pragmatism.
It started when they tossed Newt overboard in ’98 and really went to heck with the election of Dubya. Other than cutting taxes early and taking the fight to the terrorists – at least initially, the last two years of warfighting have been a white guilt-fueled disaster – what has Team Dubya and the Stupid Party done that’s worthy of another trip to Disneyland on the Potomac.
Our “choices” are: A party that is soft on national security, fiscally reckless and simply corrupt and tone-deaf; or the Democrats.
Oh, joy.
DirkBelig on May 31, 2006 at 2:53 PM
Bush did the right thing by sealing the info for 45 days. I’m still divided on the issue. Hastert seems to be taking his stance because he’s mad at the president about Porter Goss. And, if the congress knew their offices weren’t safe havens, they’d find other places to hide their treachery. At the same time, having a judge sign off on a warrant does not make it certifiably correct.
For example, say Hillary’s the pres, and she goes to a judge like Ginsberg to back her up on taking out, say, Gingrich, for no good reason. It could end up a totally crooked deal. I would not be surprised considering the Clintons did keep FBI files of all of congress for 8 years…
But, congress has been trying to overtake the power of the executive branch over the past 30 years, one example is the War Powers Act, so maybe they need to be cut down to size.
The only thing that’s for sure in my mind is that Jefferson is a lousy crook and should be dealt with as such. Those poor people after Katrina, waiting for the national guard to rescue them, but some helocopters were diverted to Jefferson’s house to save his freezer (and cold, hard, cash). Maybe some homicide charges should be brought up against this loser, too.
NTWR on May 31, 2006 at 5:18 PM
While upset with Hastert’s response to the raid, I’ll forgive him if he holds firm for secure borders and blocks the Senate immigration bill. Is there a link between these two issues? Sure as heck hope not!
dman on May 31, 2006 at 5:53 PM
DirkBelig, I posted this elsewhere, but it’s worth repeating:
When you elect the lesser of two evils, you still get evil.
dman on May 31, 2006 at 5:58 PM
Let’s see if I got this right. . .
Congress wants to legistate to protect their offices against searches by law enforcement so. . .
they can safely move the money from their freezers to their offices?
ForYourEdification on May 31, 2006 at 7:12 PM
If anyone doubted how far out of touch the Washinton elite are, this issue should clear it up. I wouldn’t care if Hastert promised a border wall thirty feet high from Texas to Cal., they cannot be allowed to win on this.
We shouldn’t have to get into discussions about what might happen if this or that person was in power and tried some backhanded legal maneuver, it’s simply a matter of common sense and justice.
I”m disapointed that Gingrich feels the ruling class deserves immunity in “their” offices. WE own that place, not them! What arrogance to suggest they be above the reach of law enforcement.
This can only end one way: Bush orders the papers unsealed and returned to the FBI.
Look how diplomatic immunity has helped the U.N. police itself. Now imagine Congress with the same deal. We’ll be calling them lords and ladies soon.
right as rain man on May 31, 2006 at 9:15 PM
who are they working for anyway?
I think Hastert’s next paycheck should be wrapped in tin foil and put into my freezer. Let him try to get it out.
entagor on May 31, 2006 at 9:31 PM
You are correct NTWR,
Newt Gingrich and his capital spin
is also being talked about in a good light by
aka bob beckel (billybob)in the afternoon show today.
Don’t trust any of those money grabbing wannabes.
Don’t turn your back on them either…
Hastert and Pelosi what a combination who would have thought
they were partners in crime…
alyce on June 1, 2006 at 12:44 AM
Yes, I’ve decided, after 24 hours’ consideration, that it is just typical crooked political spin.
Like Savage says, when people like Pelosi and Hastert agree, the American people are getting screwed!
NTWR on June 1, 2006 at 5:01 PM