ACLU comes to Craig's defense

[barondave]

The Story That Will Never Die keeps getting funnier and funnier, with heavy jolts of irony and karma. Speaking as a comedian, I'm jealous. I couldn't write stuff this good. I've tried, Lord I've tried. But Real Life (tm) keeps upping the ante.

ACLU comes to Craig's defense, McClatchy Sept. 17, 2007CE:

WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a friend-of-the court brief on behalf of Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, saying Minneapolis airport police violated his Constitutional right of free speech in charging him with disorderly conduct after arresting him in an airport men's room.

The ACLU filed its brief in the same Minnesota court where Craig is hoping to withdraw a guilty plea in connection with soliciting sex from an undercover police officer in the men's room of the Minneapolis airport. The Idaho conservative, who rarely counts the civil liberties group as an ally, is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 26.

In its brief, the ACLU argues that the government can arrest people for soliciting public sex only if it can show beyond doubt that the sex was to occur in public. The ACLU argues that solicitation for sex in a private place is protected speech under the First Amendment, no matter where the solicitation occurs.

Comments

[freeimprov.livejournal.com]

Okay, that's just WEIRD.

OTOOH

[mle292.livejournal.com]

This reminds me of an Onion "WDYT?" that ran right after the election - "They say that people get the government they deserve, but I honestly don't recall raping any nuns at knifepoint."

The ACLU would have a good point, EXCEPT that, the only reason that the police were there was because there had been complaints of people actually having sex in the bathroom.

One is legally allowed ask anyone to have sex at any time. One can NOT legally ask anyone to have public sex with at any time.

As a crass aside, it is my opinion that the ACLU has limited resources and should devote them to people who VALUE their rights to free speech. Even IF Larry Craig's Constitutional rights were violated - and I don't think that they were - what benefit is there to giving free legal counsel to someone who will actively undermine freedom of speech once he's back on his toe-tappity feet?

Larry Craig can pull himself up by his bootstraps, lie in his own bed, suffer the consequences of his actions - whatever the fuck the euphemism of the day is.

Someone who has been a contributor to a party that has actively opposed the right to have consensual sex in one's own home deserves all of the results of a government that agrees him.

Re: OTOOH

[barondave.livejournal.com]

Filing a "friend-of-the-court brief" is NOT providing legal counsel. It's simply weighing in with their take on the Constitutional issue. If Senator Larry Craig was entrapped then anyone could be. I don't think he was, but it's worth making sure.

To paraphrase the libertarians, your right to ask for sex ends with my foot in a bathroom stall. While I think it's hilarious that one of the Heartland Perverts is getting support from the ACLU, it's entirely consistent with their 1st Amendment absolutism. No moral relativism for them, no sirree. Point to the liberals.

Aside: Iirc, the police made 41 arrests in this range of cases. What happened with the others?

Re: OTOOH

[dreamshark.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I think Larry should FIGHT THE INJUSTICE! Keep fighting it! Run for office again at the next opportunity (which I dearly hope is 2008).

And I hope whoever he runs against keeps reminding his conservative constituents that the ACLU supported him (which I strongly suspect would be considered a "smear campaign" in Idaho, but hey, it's the truth!).