It really is astounding. For details, check out the full story at Steve Benen's Political Animal.
... We're talking about a powerful member of Congress engaged in foreign policy, vowing to a foreign government to oppose the administration's policies regarding that government. Ron Kampeas from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency news agency said he can't remember any U.S. official ever doing this. "[T]o have-a-face to face and say, in general, we will take your side against the White House -- that sounds to me extraordinary," Kampeas said this week.
Republicans like John Bolton and Eric Kantor have been all over a member of Congress for lesser infractions. At one point Al Gore got stomped just for criticizing Bush to foreigners. The "powerful member of Congress" Benen describes went several steps further towards treason and "met privately with a foreign head of state to promise to undermine the foreign policy of the United States."
One savvy commenter at Benen's blog cites the US Constitution*.
Any citizen of the United States, wherever he may be, who, without authority of the United States, directly or indirectly commences or carries on any correspondence or intercourse with any foreign government or any officer or agent thereof, with intent to influence the measures or conduct of any foreign government or of any officer or agent thereof, in relation to any disputes or controversies with the United States, or to defeat the measures of the United States, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.
This section shall not abridge the right of a citizen to apply himself, or his agent, to any foreign government, or the agents thereof, for redress of any injury which he may have sustained from such government or any of its agents or subjects. 1 Stat. 613, January 30, 1799, codified at 18 U.S.C. § 953 (2004)
Check it out -- and see whether you think this particular member of Congress will be fined or sent to the clink for three years.
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*An eagle-eyed commenter at this blog notes that the law in question is the 1799 Logan Act.
