Editor, Gazette-Journal:

Attempting to defund Planned Parenthood, brazen liar Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) charged that "well over 90 percent" of its activity was abortions, when factually, abortions constitute only 3 percent of its work.

When called on the lie, Kyl had such contempt for our intelligence that he offered the preposterous "alibi" that his remark "was not intended to be a factual statement"—which means he intentionally lied.

The true shame is that Kyl’s big lie was made on the Senate floor. Our Constitution (Art. I, Sec. 6, Par. 1) protects him and all legislators, within either house, giving them free passes to lie at will.

If he’d made that charge outside of Congress, to public or media, it would have violated the Federal False Statement Statute (Title 18, U.S. Code, Sec. 1001), subjecting Kyl to a possible $10,000 fine, five years in prison, or both—unless 18USCS1001 is another law from which Congress exempts it...