As evidence for how annoyed liberals must be that they have to suffer life with a minority party, there is an online groundswell to try House GOP leaders for that common, petty crime: sedition.
Taking cues from a Huffington Post article entitled “The GOP Shutdown Is Sedition and Shouldn’t be Forgiven”, a MoveOn.org petition that should be entitled “This Petition Is Ridiculous and Shouldn’t be Taken Seriously” calls for all but the heads of House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and his allies in leadership for their handling of the government shutdown and debt ceiling.
“I call on the Justice Department of the United States of America to arrest Republican Majority Leader Eric Cantor, Speaker of the House John Boehner and other decision-making House Republican leaders for the crime of seditious conspiracy against the United States of America,” the petition from a man named Marc Belisle states. A request for further comment from Belisle about his petition was unreturned as of press time.
The effort, formally called “Arrest and Try House GOP Leadership for Sedition”, was on its way to 25,000 signatures as of mid-afternoon Thursday. Naturally, some of the comments from signatories are awesome.
“Don’t stop here,” began one signer. “Go back to the cabal that met the night of the 2008 Inauguration and plotted to destroy the US economy at all costs so as to discredit the Obama administration.”
Absolutely. Sedition is just like holding in football. Happens every play.
“Those mentioned as well as G.W. Bush and his brother Jeb and Cheney should Also be Aressted [sic] and Should have been for Many crimes Years ago!!! If they Had.. Our country would Not be in the Meas [double sic] it is in and there wouldn’t be a Need to sign this petition. Oh. And don’t for get to aresst [
triple sic] the Koch brothers as well!!!” wrote another.
And from another petition signer, here’s a real legalistic flourish:
“These Members of Congress are alleged to have been engaged in these behaviors: Sedition Conspiracy to subvert the Constitution and the democratic process Violation of oath of office [Domestic] and Global Economic Terrorism Threatening the general welfare of the US Legislative Negligence Legislative Blackmail and Extortion Nomothetic Malaise Conduct unbecoming a member of Congress Dereliction of Duty Malfeasance Cronyism Corruption of the public trust Self-Aggrandizement Maniacal Egotism Self-serving Attributional Bias.”
I remember the first time James Joyce tried a case in court, too.
