Madison Cawthorn Lawyer Cites Confederate Amnesty Act To Defend Rep's Job

[Zorro]

A lawyer for Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) cited an 1872 congressional action granting amnesty to Confederate soldiers to defend his own client’s eligibility for office.

The argument from Cawthorn lawyer James Bopp Jr. came in response to a legal effort to have Cawthorn declared ineligible for office because he allegedly “encouraged, and upon reasonable suspicion helped aid, the insurrection” on Jan. 6.

The legal challenge, from a group of North Carolina voters backed by the organization Free Speech For People, alleges that Cawthorn violated the third section of the 14th Amendment, which states, “No Person shall be a […] Representative in Congress […] who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress […] to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same.”

On the phone with TPM Wednesday, Bopp said “there are substantial constitutional defenses, which include the fact that Congress passed the 1872 Amnesty Act, which removed all persons whatsoever from the disability under Section 3 as a result of engaging in an insurrection or rebellion.”

Though the Amnesty Act applied at the time to Confederate soldiers who fought in the Civil War, nothing in the law prevented it from being applied in the future, Bopp argued.

“There’s nothing in the Amnesty Act that says it’s only applicable to the Civil War, and it was very broad in its terms,” he said.

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/madison-cawthorn-lawyer-cites-confederate-amnesty-act-to-defend-reps-job-capitol-insurrection

Now that's some fancy lawyerin' there...

[dchill]

1. That's diggin' deep!

[highplainsdem]

2. ...

[unblock]

3. Lol! Yeah I'm sure congressional intent was to grant amnesty to any future insurrectionists

[struggle4progress]

13. +

[inthewind21]

20. Irony here

By using that law he's saying Yes, his client participated in an insurrection but in 1872 congress gave him amnesty.

[James48]

4. He's right.

Except for one thing- that law would be unconstitutional, because you can’t pass a law which is contrary to a Constitutional (14th) amendment.

[struggle4progress]

14. +

[NCjack]

5. I had no idea that Cawthorn served in the CSA's military.

[keithbvadu2]

7. Maybe he was in ROTC?

Even that would be a stretch.

[intheflow]

19. Past life experience. n/t

[Mr.Bill]

6. If that's their only defense,

Cawthorne is in big trouble.

[Gore1FL]

8. Doesn't that strategy inherently imply guilt? nt

[inthewind21]

21. It

absolutely implies it.

[area51]

9. And Cawthorn's white hood comes out. n/t

[tirebiter]

10. Sounds a lot like an admission

[Bobstandard]

11. So they're admitting to insurrection, but..

It looks like Cawthorn's legal team is saying, "yeah, our client engaged in insurrection, but that's permissible. They're an old law that says so. (If you look at it the right way. Wink, wink).

[MyMission]

12. I looked up his lawyer, and he's a big deal and no dipshit

He does fancy lawyering, for sure! For all the creepy right wing groups, pushing their agendas.
He's a conservative loyalist and activist, and his wikipedia page mentioned his notable work was for the case citizens united vs FEC. He's got gravitas.

Bopp is known for his staunch social conservatism,[6][7] and his past and present clients are "a who's who of social conservatism," including the Traditional Values Coalition, the Home School Legal Defense Association, Concerned Women for America, and the Federation for American Immigration Reform.[7] He has been the general counsel for National Right to Life since 1978, the James Madison Center for Free Speech since 1997, and as the special counsel for Focus on the Family since 2004.[8] Bop was the editor of Restoring the Right to Life: The Human Life Amendment, a book promoting the Human Life Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to overturn Roe v. Wade and ban abortion.[9]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Bopp

I find it interesting he has such a connected lawyer, not surprised.
I'm trying to follow this because cawthorn was elected in my district, but I refuse to call him my representative.

Thanks for posting this.

[ProfessorGAC]

25. One Nit To Pick

He can be a big deal, but still be a dipshit.

[MyMission]

26. I see your point

I was thinking in terms of comparing him to lawyers I didn't want to name, like Rudy or Linwood, or other dipshit lawyers in tfg's orbit. This Bopp guy is something else. Evil, sinister, smart, not a clown or a sycophant. That's what I meant to convey. Lots in tfg's orbit think they're a big deal and they aren't, but they are dipshits. That's very true. This guy probably wouldn't work for tfg.

[FreepFryer]

15. That lawyer charges oligarch rates, I'm sure. Wonder who's footing Maddy's bill? (Nt)

[blue-wave]

16. This is surreal

As others have mentioned, it is an admission of "engaging in an insurrection or rebellion.” So their defense is to say: Yeah, I did it now let me go.

[TomSlick]

17. It seems to me the statute was unconstitutional on its face when passed.

A statute cannot remove disqualifications from office imposed by the Constitution.

[lame54]

18. Hope he gets paid in greybacks

[Vinca]

22. What kind of lawyer takes a case where they have to argue their client, the traitor, is

entitled to run for office again? And why hasn't Trump already hired the guy??

[ProfessorGAC]

24. Maybe Because He Actually Wants To Get Paid!

If he took your suggestion about TFG, he'd be working for free.

[monkeyman1]

27. to bad there wasn't a big ol' black bear behind him ? might have been lunch??