Massie V Pelosi
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Sounds like the judges are very skeptical of Massie's claim. Trying to argue common sense in their courts is not an easy thing to do.
I don't think that's what I heard. I think the court was looking for any excuse to refuse to touch a hot potato.Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptUSA
The District Court's opinion can be read here: https://casetext.com/case/massie-v-pelosi
The 27th Amendment argument seems rather far fetched. Satisfying a fine out of a Congressman's compensation isn't a reduction any more than taking withholding taxes out of it would be. It shouldn't matter that the fine was imposed and enforced without an intervening election, because if compensation isn't being "varied" the Amendment is inapplicable.
Looked at another way, if taxing a federal judge's compensation doesn't constitute a diminishment of the salary in violation of Article III (which the Supreme Court has held is the case), it's hard to see how taking a fine out of a congressman's pay is "varying" his compensation. It's true that, unlike a fine, taxes are enacted by Congress, but since the Constitution gives each house the specificv authority to adopt it own rules of procedure and discipline its members, such a distinction is immaterial.