“The state has no right to say what the duties of a congresswoman are. The state has no right to say when the office becomes vacant.” — Paul Bender, a constitutional scholar and a former dean of the Arizona State University College of Law
Excerpted from “Gabrielle Giffords continues recovery while Arizona statute endangers hold on seat” By Philip Rucker and Dana Hedgpeth, Washington Post Staff Writers, The Washington Post, Monday, January 17, 2011; 9:24 PM
[SIZE="+2"]A[/SIZE] statute buried in state law says that if a public officeholder ceases to "discharge the duties of office for the period of three consecutive months," the office shall be deemed vacant, and that at such time, a special election could be called to fill the opening.
Is it possible that the Arizona Republican-dominated state legislature intends to throw Gabrielle Giffords out of the office and seek a representative more to their liking? Knowing the Arizona GOP: oh, yes, this is very possible.