Is there a constitutional right to commit perjury? You might think so after reading the defense lobby's take on provisions of the Crime Bill. I'm no fan of the federal 'hook and cook' model, but perjury standards at the state level are presently so weak as to make perjury cases extremely rare.

Defense attorneys protest that the anti-crime bill has many prosecution tools that could be misused. But they defend their own highly misused practice of passing on secret grand jury minutes, containing witness information, to their clients.

The Speaker, a defense lawyer of some distinction himself, is maintaining his silence.