When a legislator violates their oath of office to uphold and defend the Constitution, state or federal, there should be consequences. The idea that legislative bodies will police their own is laughable. The states should have a say in the continued activities of legislators who violate their oath.The 17th Amendment took all state representation away from the states. We are in the United States and the states have no say? Only the Senate can discipline a senator?
Alaska has its own sovereign constitution. We should be able to punish those elected officials who do not uphold their oath of office.I propose a trial for those accused of violating their oath. We can disagree on many things but the Constitution remains the bedrock of our legal framework. The state Supreme Court would hold a trial for elected officials accused of violating their oath to uphold and defend the Constitution. If found guilty, the violator would receive a felony conviction and be sentenced to a minimum of six years plus one day in jail and be disallowed from participating in elected office in the future.
It is unlikely any official would ever actually spend any time in jail. However, a senator with a six-year term, the longest of any elected official, would be unable to go to Washington. The U.S. Senate could kick out the convicted senator and that person would then be released from jail, but the felony conviction would remain.
Maybe elected officials would begin to take their oath of office more seriously.
— Arthur Solvang
Willow
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