"The U.S. Constitution has prohibited bills of
attainder since 1787.
U.S. founders objected to bills
of attainder because in England Parliament passed many
such bills against political enemies, used them to
throw people in prison and even execute them without
On December 11, 2009, a federal judge ruled that
Congress had unconstitutionally cut off all federal
funds to ACORN. The
judge issued an injunction
stopping federal authorities from continuing to cut off
past, present and future federal funds to the community
ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for
Reform Now) and its allies in 75 cities will again have
access to millions of federal dollars to counsel people
facing foreclosure, seeking IRS tax refunds, and
looking for affordable low cost housing. ACORN, which
has received about $54 million in government grants
since 1994, will be able to apply for new federal
programs just like any other organization.
The court ruled that Congress violated the U.S.
Constitution "by singling out ACORN and its affiliates
for severe sweeping restrictions" and that such action
constitutes illegal punishment or a "bill of
What is a bill of attainder? Even most lawyers have no
idea. Bills
of attainder are acts of congress which
unilaterally punish an individual or organization.
Essentially Congress acts as prosecutor, judge, jury
The U.S. Constitution has prohibited bills of attainder
since 1787. U.S.
founders objected to bills of
attainder because in England Parliament passed many
such bills against political enemies, used them to
throw people in prison and even execute them without
Congress punished ACORN without even trying to figure
out if any laws had been broken or allowing the 500,000
member organization to defend itself.
What about protecting the taxpayers against fraud? As
the court pointed out, there are many legal ways for
the government to investigate and terminate federal
contractors which have been proven to engage in fraud
But Congress did not want to wait for trials or proof
or to allow ACORN due process.
Conservatives developed a voting majority and imposed
punishment without a hearing or anything.
ACORN has been a target of right-wing politicians for
years. Conservatives
hate ACORN primarily because it
registered over two million people to vote since 2003
and because it has an overwhelming African American,
working class, democratic-voting, membership.
Fox News is obsessed with ACORN. Google Fox News and
ACORN and you will see over two million hits. Google
Glenn Beck and ACORN and you get over a million hits,
six hundred thousand for Rush, and three hundred
thousand for Michelle Malkin. Right wing members of
Congress accused ACORN of being a "shell game"
using
millions of taxpayer dollars "to advertise for a
political candidate" and which "helped President
Obama
After a highly dubious right-wing sting operation in
September, the conservative media machine overran
Congress members, including, sadly, many democrats, and
passed the bill of attainder cutting off all federal
funds to ACORN and any affiliates, subsidiaries and
Most Congress reps knew full well this was an illegal
bill of attainder as it was pointed out in the debates
and even by the Congressional Research Office, but
voted to let it go through anyway. Representatives
Nadler and Grayson and Senator Leahy, among others,
repeatedly pointed out that this was unconstitutional.
Democrats who voted for the bill of attainder included
many who had sought and received help from ACORN
members in the past.
They have some explaining to do.
Progressives who remained silent while the nation's
largest low income African American community
organization was under attack also should re-think
their lack of support.
Did anyone think that if the
right-wingers took down Van Jones and ACORN they would
stop there? What
is ahead? Surely the
conservative
opponents of ACORN will continue to bloviate and
continue to try to put ACORN out of business. There
will likely be fights galore. But with this ruling the
fights will be a little fairer.
ACORN won this case.
The U.S. Supreme Court has called
the prohibition of congressional bills of attainder a
"bulwark against tyranny." Here the bulwark against
tyranny worked to stop the right-wing smear machine.
But the rule of law won too. And all of us and
Congress have again been taught a valuable lesson -
there are no shortcuts when it comes to following the
Bill is legal director of the Center for Constitutional
Rights and one of the team who represented ACORN in
their successful federal constitutional challenge. You
From: Z Net - The Spirit Of Resistance Lives