Posted on 11/14/2013 8:17:19 PM PST by publius321
Sorry, but you are mistaken.
this is just a blog writer’s personal opinion, not settled law. it’s no stronger than my opinion. at worst we’re at a draw.
The U.S. Constitution does say how a senator or congressman can be removed from office - by a vote of expulsion by 2/3rds of their peers. No other way is allowed.
it explains the enumerated powers fedgov has. there is no enumerated power reserving this power to fedgov.
Yes there is. Article I, Section 5.
further nothing in it specifically tells states they cannot recall their electors
Nothing in it says they can either. It says that the only way a sitting member can be removed is through expulsion.
So, let's try the Congressional Research Service .
Why don't you try and Google up some reliable sources that support your view?
the tenth amendment covers the fact they don’t explicitly say they can remove them. all unenumerated powers retained by the state and the people.
whether i like heritage has nothing to do with the discussion. or if i like the color blue.
Actually the Constitution is quite explicit. Article I, Section 5 says each house of Congress is responsible its proceedings, punishing its members, and, with a two thirds vote, expelling a member. Clearly removing a member of Congress is a power delegated to the United States by the Constitution and not to the states themselves.
I thought this discussion had to do with the feasibility of mounting a recall effort against McCain, not with your color preferences.
The fact is that such an effort is not feasible -- on constitutional grounds -- regardless of what you might personally want to believe.
If you want to remove the senile cretin from the Senate, it must be by his retirement, expulsion, death...or defeating him at the polls.
That is just a stated remedy IF Congress decides to act. That doesn’t mean states can’t have their own remedy.
It’s like if the guy commits a capital crime, it can be both a federal crime as well as a state crime and he can be prosecuted at both levels, or at one or the other, if one decides not to prosecute. It happens all the time that the feds convict in federal court, then the state gets them and convicts them in state court. Sometimes the feds pass and the state prosecutes, soemtimes the state passes and the feds prosecute.
There are state level remedies and federal level remedies. Article 1 section 5 just spells out what redress Congress can do. It doesn’t limit what the states can do, as the Constitution clearly says that the states are in charge of their own election laws, and each states’ election laws are where any recall language is included, if they have that in their state law.
We can agree to disagree, I don’t really care. I just think it could be possible.
No, he must be shamed ( I know that is harsh and borderline dysfunctional ) and made to feel like he is a minister without portfolio.
These elitist snobs in the Senate need to really see how we feel about them even if it is only symbolic.
He gets a petition that says 250k, or 500k or a 1 million people have no confidence in him, maybe he'll get the hint and resign. Ditto that Hatch, McConnell, and insert any other name....
I wish you well in that quest.
But I suspect it, too, will come to naught -- as there is not so much as an ounce of humility to be found in McCain's psyche.
the recall did not fail it was withdrawn after 9-11-01 check your facts
http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/mccain/articles/2007/03/01/20070301mccainbio-chapter11.html
Nice treatment for a hero, for one who served to keep you and me safe. Guess you ... oh never mind, you get my drift.
See if you can dredge up SOME gratitude, from somewhere deep in your mind.
No one is perfect. Why don't YOU run for office. :o)
The word I got later was that there were not going to be enough signatures. Do you suppose maybe 9-11-01 provided a way to bow out gracefully?
He graduated in the cellar of his class. He was real hard on expensive Navy hardware. If his grandpa wasn't who he was, MeCain might have been drummed out.
He was “lucky” to be a POW in the same sense JFK was “lucky” he was shot. Saved his reputation. Made him a hero.
I used to give him credit for all that, but he has long since overdrawn his account.
They put Duke Cunningham, who was a no-$hi+ hero, in prison but made Keating Five MeCain a nominee.
Your certainty on the issue has been nagging me. A tea Party group in NJ attempted to recall Sen. Menendez because our State Constitution said it could be done. The NJSC declared that power, clearly reserved to the people in our State Constitution, unconstitutional. The founder of the group sums it up as follows:
In this decision four out of six N.J. Supreme Court justices practiced judicial activism as they disenfranchised the will of the people of New Jersey and our legislatures, declared our N.J. Constitution unconstitutional and disregarded the intent of our founders as they disregarded a letter by George Washington, president of the Constitutional Convention, that clearly stated that our founders intended that we retained the right to recall our representatives, she said.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1110/45347.html#ixzz2lQpFHgEB
The group had lawyers working with them pro bono, but an appeal to the federal level was never pursued, apparently, for lack of funds. I suspect that you’re much more familiar with relevant case law than I am as a lay person and it would be appreciated if you are able and willing to help me settle my mind and let me know briefly where, when and how the issue has been so definitively settled. Thanks in advance for any further clarification you may provide.
My "expertise" stems from the American History textbook we used by junior year in high school (c. 1955). Among other things, we learned that there is no provision for the recall of federal officials within the Constitution.
A Senator or a Congressman may be forcibly removed by expulsion. A President or an appointed official (e.g., judges) may be impeached.
Just as the state laws regarding term limits don't apply to Congressmen and Senators, state laws concerning the recall process don't apply to them, either. Once elected, they are federal officials, not state officials.
Suggest you Google "U.S. Senator, recall" for further information.
Thanks for the openness, information and suggestion.
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