A Question on Criminal Penalties.

[maine_raptor]

After seeing The Ol' Bug Killer (Tom DeLay) on MTP and Today over the past couple of days, a question popped into my mind:

If a Federal political is convicted of using his/her office to enrich themselves, then, along with any jail time, should they also have their Citizenship revoked?


My thinking on this is: Upon elected to office, you are given "The Public Trust". In abusing that Trust, you have betrayed to your fellow Citizens, and thus you should be no longer counter among that group.

A Public Shunning, if you will.

Thoughts, my fellow DU'ers?

:donut: (too early for popcorn)

[TreasonousBastard]

1. Can't be done-- if you're born here...

you can't be "exiled." We're stuck with you.

If naturalized, your citizenship is fairly easily yanked, though.

[maine_raptor]

2. Not true. Natural Born Citizens CAN loose Citizenship

US Code: Title 8 > Chapter 12 > Subchapter III > Part III > § 1481

Loss of nationality by native-born or naturalized citizen; voluntary action; burden of proof; presumptions:

(a) (7)

"committing any act of treason against, or attempting by force to overthrow, or bearing arms against, the United States, violating or conspiring to violate any of the provisions of section 2383 of title 18, or willfully performing any act in violation of section 2385 of title 18, or violating section 2384 of title 18 by engaging in a conspiracy to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States, or to levy war against them, if and when he is convicted thereof by a court martial or by a court of competent jurisdiction. "


http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode08/usc_sec_08_00001481----000-.html

[TreasonousBastard]

3. Tain't quite the whole story...

also in that part is this little tidbit:

"voluntarily performing any of the following acts with the intention of relinquishing United States nationality"

While "voluntary" might be presumed, "intent" isn't necessarily so.

Whilst Shrub's crimes and incompetance might be pretty bad from our point of view, it's really hard to meet this sort of standard.

Exiling them to Haiti, Tuvalu, Zimbabwe, or some other paradise just isn't in the cards, much as it sounds so enticing.