Does anyone know what happens to Stevens's congressional pension under the various scenarios? There are a large number of scenarios, based on any combination of the following:

- In the final count, is he re-elected or defeated?

- Is he expelled, or does he quit?

- Is action taken in the lame-duck session, or in the next session?

- Are his convictions ultimately upheld or overturned?

Do any of these eventualities affect whether he keeps his congressional pension, and/or the amount? Does anyone (Stevens, Republicans, Democrats) appear to have a strategy to ensure or deny his pension?

I am sure the Dems would take him if they could- reconciliation being what it is.

The questions I think most important (assuming he is re-elected):

If he is expelled in the lame-duck session, does the expulsion carry over into the incoming 111th congress? Or would the November 2008 vote of the Alaska electorate trump the expulsion and force the Republicans to go through th motions again in January?

And would they then do it again, or decline to punish him twice on some double-jeapordy analogy?

There seem to be a lot of variables, including a different pension plan that some members of Congress could have opted for, but I did find this on a US government info web site:

Members of Congress are not eligible for a pension until they reach the age of 50, but only if they've completed 20 years of service. Members are eligible at any age after completing 25 years of service or after they reach the age of 62. Please also note that Member's of Congress have to serve at least 5 years to even receive a pension.

The amount of a Congressperson's pension depends on the years of service and the average of the highest 3 years of his or her salary. By law, the starting amount of a Member's retirement annuity may not exceed 80% of his or her final salary.

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Nothing about a pension being rescinded automatically if one is expelled. It must be nice; for most of us out here in the business world, defined benefit pension plans went the way of the Edsel and the dodo bird. I would be thrilled to be eligible for a pension under such terms. Of course today's retirees are getting a pretty sweet deal from Social Security, most getting much more than they ever put in. That gravy train can't last too much longer.

This is SOP for the GOP -- Wait until Thursday after the New York Times, the Washington Post and other newspapers have passed their deadlines. Then announce.

The Republicans do not need more bad publicity, especially not in the form of a corrupt senator from the same state as their shining new star. Best to release that information on a Friday when nobody's paying attention.