ACORN Funding Ban Reinstated

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has reinstated the ACORN funding ban voted by Congress, Human Events is reporting. A copy of the Second Circuit's order is here.

This an appeal from the District Court ruling that had found the funding ban unconstitutional as a bill of attainder. Somehow, the District Court thought that ACORN has a constitutional right to continue to receive your money even if it behaves badly.

On September 18, 2009, I called Jerrold Nadler a nut for suggesting that ACORN had a constitutional right to your money, but the District Court judge agreed with him, called the legislation a bill of attainder.

A bill of attainder is legislated punishment imposed by Congress after the wrongful act has occurred. It has typically been thought of as a criminal law enacted after commission of the act now legislated to be criminal. For example, Congress could not punish Nancy Pelosi for her back-room deals on the health care bill by making those deals illegal after-the-fact.