Quote Originally Posted by HosakawaTito
So why is it that our political leaders, who wield even greater authority, are not held to a higher standard of legal/ethical/moral behavior?
It does seem incongruous, I admit. But it does underline the primacy of the will of the people. If felony conviction is not a written bar to election, the people can elect anyone to hold office.

It's a stretch, but stay with me a moment: Think of all the 3rd world nations where political opposition is jailed for years/decades. Mandela, etc. If not killed, they eventually get released. Sometimes, the people, having either changed their minds about the guy, or had their own opposition suppressed, or in a 'fit' of liberation-fever, want that convicted felon elevated to office.

Just a thought.