I don't want to hear again from the attorney general or anyone on this floor that this government has shown it can be trusted to use the power we give it with restraint and care.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Without the ability to talk about government power, there's no way for citizens to make sure this power isn't being misused.
So government acts as a safeguard of our property.
Before we decide to trust you with this power, we ask you to stand before the public and explain your views. Justice may be blind, but it should not be deaf.
The attorney general should be enforcing the law, not policy.
This demonstration of power, indifferent to the law, is highly dangerous.
There should be a law that you can't shut down the government - that you don't have that power.
As attorney general, I can either look into it or I can ignore it because they're a bunch of powerful legislators... and I'm afraid they're going to cut my budget.
It is very difficult to get legislation passed. But then the danger always is that you have no power at all if you do not exercise constant power.
If legislators come to believe that police power is an ever-present constitutional trump card they can play whenever it suits them, overreaching is inexorable.
Power tends to protect itself merely to maintain its own status and control. Principle gives up power for the sake of creating the best public policy.