#rsrh This David Wu thing has gone on long enough.

If the man was blacking out and wandering around unattended on Election Day because of his reaction to “a common mental health drug” – do I even want to know what that’s an euphemism for? – and if this is part of a pattern of behavior that led to the end of his marriage and the mass resignation of his staff*… then maybe this guy shouldn’t be a Congressman.

Moe Lane

PS: Even in Oregon, “crazy” should not beat “Republican.”  Just to make that clear.

*Who, by the way, don’t get any credit for that, given that they all deliberately went and got somebody who they all think is crazy re-elected.  We’re just all fortunate that David Wu’s apparently fragile mental state is more conducive towards “dressing like a tiger” than it is something more, ah, problematical…

3 thoughts on “#rsrh This David Wu thing has gone on long enough.”

  1. This, Giffords, Kennedy, and Byrd all point to the need for a way to declare a member of Congress unfit for office. Unfortunately, the possibilities for abuse abound.

  2. Art. 1, Sect. 5:

    Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each House may provide.

    Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behavior, and, with the Concurrence of two-thirds, expel a Member.

    It might be that they wouldn’t like the modern connotations of “expel”, but that’s the reality. Note that it takes a two-thirds vote, but not the concurrence of the other House or the President’s signature.

    Note also that there’s no supermajority requirement for judging “Elections, Returns and Qualifications”. I read that as saying an ordinary vote (half + 1 of a quorum, which is half the total membership) could declare a Member “unqualified”. The Court would probably hold that 110 can disqualify a Republican if only a quorum shows up, but it takes two-thirds to boot a Democrat.

    Regards,
    Ric

  3. I live in Mr. Wu’s district, and, yes, “crazy” does trump “Republican” every time…

Comments are closed.