Quote:
Originally Posted by d-null
so basically due to the public climate of the whole issue, pleading the fifth would result in severe loss of public reputation, making it virtually an impossible option for those that have been called up, and also putting them in a situation where they were pretty much forced to lie... shitty situation all around by congress to be allowed to do this  |
You nailed it on the head. The hearings put people in a very tough situation--torn between looking guilty by pleading the 5th or fucking yourself if you answer wrong. It's fucked either way but Congress has always dragged people in for investigatory hearings. The most fucked up and infamous examples are those McCarthy anti-communist witchhunt hearings of the 50s. Trial by innuendo.