WWTBAM Bored

Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska, after whom nearly everything built in Alaska after 1962 is named, has been found guilty of lying about gifts in the form of home renovations given him by an oil company executive.

Sen. Stevens is up for re-election in a close race.

Didn't he want to build a bridge to somewhere? I can't remember now...

Conjecture is that he'll get elected but because he's convicted cannot serve, so the Governor will appoint herself to his seat. After she loses the Veep race, that is. Of course.

ghostjmf wrote:Conjecture is that he'll get elected but because he's convicted cannot serve, so the Governor will appoint herself to his seat. After she loses the Veep race, that is. Of course.

Conjecture is wrong. If elected, he can serve unless the Senate excludes or expels him.

I would, however, expect an expulsion if he doesn't resign, even though it takes a two-thirds vote of the Senate. --Bob

nitrah55 wrote:Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska, after whom nearly everything built in Alaska after 1962 is named, has been found guilty of lying about gifts in the form of home renovations given him by an oil company executive.

Sen. Stevens is up for re-election in a close race.

I'm guessing it's suddenly not as close as it used to be. --Bob

ghostjmf wrote:Conjecture is that he'll get elected but because he's convicted cannot serve, so the Governor will appoint herself to his seat. After she loses the Veep race, that is. Of course.

I thought after Murkowski appointed his daughter to fill his Senate seat when he became Governor, the state constitution was changed so that the Governor couldn't appoint someone to fill the seat in the interim, but rather there would be a special election.

But, really, he was about even in the polls before he was found guilty. I don't think there's much chance he'll be re-elected.

ToLiveIsToFly wrote:

ghostjmf wrote:Conjecture is that he'll get elected but because he's convicted cannot serve, so the Governor will appoint herself to his seat. After she loses the Veep race, that is. Of course.

I thought after Murkowski appointed his daughter to fill his Senate seat when he became Governor, the state constitution was changed so that the Governor couldn't appoint someone to fill the seat in the interim, but rather there would be a special election.

But, really, he was about even in the polls before he was found guilty. I don't think there's much chance he'll be re-elected.

I haven't checked, but I remember it differently. As I recall, Frank Murkowski took over from Tony Knowles, a Democrat. To ensure that the incoming governor, Murkowski, would have the opportunity to appoint the new senator, the Legislature changed the law (probably over a Knowles veto) to provide a five-day waiting period before the Governor could fill a vacancy. Murkowski then simply delayed his resignation until less than five days before Knowles's term expired, and as the incoming Governor, appointed his daughter to the vacancy created by his resignation. --Bob

*singing* "Goodbye, Senator No, though we never knew you at all..."

Bob78164 wrote:

ghostjmf wrote:Conjecture is that he'll get elected but because he's convicted cannot serve, so the Governor will appoint herself to his seat. After she loses the Veep race, that is. Of course.

Conjecture is wrong. If elected, he can serve unless the Senate excludes or expels him.

I would, however, expect an expulsion if he doesn't resign, even though it takes a two-thirds vote of the Senate. --Bob

The US Senate has never voted to expel a Senator until after appeals have been exhausted.

I do think that the GOP holds the seat if it is announced (or enough voters realize) that they could have a special election in 60 to 90 days after Stevens resigns, and it likely could be Palin herself running if she is not the VP.

Of course, Stevens has to show some humility for it to work, and that might be asking for too much.

Appa23 wrote:

Bob78164 wrote:

ghostjmf wrote:Conjecture is that he'll get elected but because he's convicted cannot serve, so the Governor will appoint herself to his seat. After she loses the Veep race, that is. Of course.

Conjecture is wrong. If elected, he can serve unless the Senate excludes or expels him.

I would, however, expect an expulsion if he doesn't resign, even though it takes a two-thirds vote of the Senate. --Bob

The US Senate has never voted to expel a Senator until after appeals have been exhausted.

I do think that the GOP holds the seat if it is announced (or enough voters realize) that they could have a special election in 60 to 90 days after Stevens resigns, and it likely could be Palin herself running if she is not the VP.

Of course, Stevens has to show some humility for it to work, and that might be asking for too much.

There are two laws on the books in Alaska about what happens when there's a Senate vacancy, and they contradict each other.

One was passed by the state legislature, and it says that there's a special election between 60 and 90 days of the vacancy, and that the governor appoints an interim senator until the elected senator takes office.

The other passed by referendum and is basically identical to the other law, except there's no provision for the interim senator.

If Stevens resigned and the Gov (whoever that might be at the time) named an interim, the Alaska Supreme Court would have to rule on whether the gov was allowed to do that.

There are some interesting issues here, including that the 17th Amendment specifically says that the means of filling senatorial vacancies are up to the "state legislatures," not the "states," so someone could argue that you can't legislate the senatorial vacancy law by referendum.

PS- This may well be a moot point, as Stevens was only running even with Begich before this.

NBC reports that John McCain has called for Stevens to resign. Now.

nitrah55 wrote:

Appa23 wrote:

Bob78164 wrote:Conjecture is wrong. If elected, he can serve unless the Senate excludes or expels him.

I would, however, expect an expulsion if he doesn't resign, even though it takes a two-thirds vote of the Senate. --Bob

The US Senate has never voted to expel a Senator until after appeals have been exhausted.

I do think that the GOP holds the seat if it is announced (or enough voters realize) that they could have a special election in 60 to 90 days after Stevens resigns, and it likely could be Palin herself running if she is not the VP.

Of course, Stevens has to show some humility for it to work, and that might be asking for too much.

There are two laws on the books in Alaska about what happens when there's a Senate vacancy, and they contradict each other.

One was passed by the state legislature, and it says that there's a special election between 60 and 90 days of the vacancy, and that the governor appoints an interim senator until the elected senator takes office.

The other passed by referendum and is basically identical to the other law, except there's no provision for the interim senator.

If Stevens resigned and the Gov (whoever that might be at the time) named an interim, the Alaska Supreme Court would have to rule on whether the gov was allowed to do that.

There are some interesting issues here, including that the 17th Amendment specifically says that the means of filling senatorial vacancies are up to the "state legislatures," not the "states," so someone could argue that you can't legislate the senatorial vacancy law by referendum.

PS- This may well be a moot point, as Stevens was only running even with Begich before this.

I saw an article about that discrepancy. I think that any legal challenge would side with the statute, allowing for the short-time appointment.

Glad he was convicted. Even if another Republican senate seat is lost (as is very likely), a crook is a crook is a crook.

I hope he spends his last days in the pokie.