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Well they aren't a person who shall be a Representative. They're a corporation that shall be a representative. The Constitution doesn't say that only people may
by jackowayed 17y ago
Well they aren't a person who shall be a Representative. They're a corporation that shall be a representative. The Constitution doesn't say that only people may run for Congress, only that if a person chooses, he has special restrictions.
Now, the state election laws may make it impossible for them to get on the ballot, but the Constitution doesn't put any restrictions on a corporation that shall be a Representative.
- pyre 17y agoBut the point that sparked this thread was about corporate personhood (i.e. the law says that a corporate is a person). So arguing that a corporation isn't a person under these restrictions is kind of circular.
- CWuestefeld 17y agoPerhaps you forgot to read my post to which your responded. Or else, can you describe in what way a Corporation is, in fact, a citizen of the United States?
- jackowayed 17y agoMy point is that, from a very literal standpoint, since they didn't say "you must be a person that ... to be a Representative", there's no actual restriction saying that only people may be Representatives. It just says that certain restrictions apply to people who wish to be representatives. If you're not a person, then " No Person shall be a Representative who ..." doesn't restrict you. It's splitting hairs to the max, and I'm sure a court would find some way around it if it ever got there.
- jerf 17y agoOh, we'll be having that fight, but it won't be over corporations. It'll be over sentient programs. Also, is that 25 years objective or 25 years subjective, in the case of an AI that grows up faster than real time? (To the extent that that even has meaning outside of a direct human brain simulation.)
- joubert 17y agoOnly natural persons can be citizens (by definition).