Legislation
Class Notes
More on bribery
We
were talking yesterday about elements of the bribery statute. You need corrupt intent.
One
way you can maybe prove bribery is to show that because of a contribution, a
lawmaker voted way differently than they ever had before.
Most
people think that explicit quid pro quo arrangements are very rare because
people aren’t that stupid. So what are
you seeking in exchange for your campaign contribution if it’s not quid pro quo
specific delivery of a vote? You’re
paying for access! You don’t know what
your next agenda item is going to be, but you want access to the real dude or
dudette!
Think
about corrupt intent as a sum result of a bunch of factors. Something is more likely to be corrupt if you’re
appealing to an official’s self-interest as opposed to an official’s
self-interest only incidentally to your own pursuit.
Most
campaign contributions are intended to get people reelected.
What
is the difference between an unlawful gratuity and a bribe?
This
says that the Speech or Debate Clause covers more stuff than just floor debate,
but it’s still limited in some ways. It
is said that the Speech or Debate Clause limits the possibility for
prosecution.
If
you’re worried that you could have a prosecutor on your back, you might waste a
lot of your time defending against prosecutors.
Even
though the Speech or Debate clause originated out of the perception that the
executive branch might harass the legislative branch, private individuals might
also harass legislators for defamatory acts.
Does anybody have to go to court to defend themselves?
This
is a really absolute doctrine with no balancing.
Jim Wright
He
was Speaker of the House for six years.
He was viewed as an extremely effective speaker in Reagan’s second
term. There was a lot of bitterness when
Newt Gingrich started this ethics investigation. Both the House and Senate provide for these
kinds of ethics investigations. Gingrich
became the first sitting speaker to be reprimanded by the House for something
else. What function do these kinds of
procedures fulfill?