Couple of problems with these claims:

1. Deacons are not clergy, but elected lay members of a congregation. The "priest-penitent" privilege (and all privileges generally) is to be read narrowly, and generally only applies to the ordained or those who perform the role of the ordained. Otherwise, every regular church goer could claim the privilege.

2. For a religious counseling privilege to be applicable, it would have to be shown Ensign sought Coburn out as a spiritual advisor/member of clergy, not a friend or colleague in the Senate or any other role. There's no basis for that here.

3. For a physician privilege to apply, similarly, the statement would have to be related to seeking medical treatment, not just talking things out.

4. In both cases, the privilege relates to what Ensign said, not the member of clergy or physician (except to the extent that response would somehow reveal the confidential information)

5. The communications by Ensign have to be shown to be confidential - not applicable in the presence of a third party like the husband, and Ensign's own admission of involvement with the woman and having spoken to Coburn.

6. It sure sounds like Coburn was advocating that Ensign provide hush-money to the family, which in turn could be seen as advocating a crime/aiding Ensign in a scheme to deprive Nevadans of fair services (since the episode is arguably relevant to Ensign's conduct every bit as much as Bill/Monica and a payoff was specifically designed to shut the family up). Someone like, say, Ken Starr might argue that made the communications exempt from privilege under the crime/fraud exemption.

I could go on, but its just another example of how Coburn is awfully ignorant of the law for someone charged with enacting them.

Hmmmm, do I smell another resignation coming down the Pike???

These people are just blatant criminals. This is a real problem for the thugs

Ha! Coburn giving Ensign advice in his capacity as a doctor can only mean one thing: the lady gave the Senator the clap!

This might have been a non-story, but Coburn just elevated it, with his lies of pastoral counseling. Now everyone will pick it up! It's never the crime, it's the cover-up!

These right-wing fascists always try to throw a Bible in your face when you ask them what kind of damned crooks they think they are. I wish this would put Coburn in trouble too for aiding and abetting but the people he represents are as dumb and gullible as ever and will think all the more of him for doing "God's Work" with his scumbag friend from Nevada.

WWJD? He would pay off the husband to shut him up! You liberal pagans just wouldn't understand true morality if your mistress bit you in the ass!

Jesus wanted him to commit the affair to relieve the stress of the socialist-communist government he's living under.

I do not understand when this Republican worldview was born that they could simply decide to NOT be bound by law just because they don't wanna.
Now, I get the whole Bush/Cheney/Rove/Gonzo thing. Liars,cheaters and so on. But, just how did it develop as the default mind set? Really incredible. They don't even pretend to give a Sh%$^. Can normal, independent voters miss this insanity?

The Republican party hates entitlement programs and the people they help. But, how can they justify this when THEIR COLLECTIVE PARTY EXISTENCE IS JUST ONE BIG ENTITLEMENT PROGRAM?

Ladies and Gentleman, I give you the New Leader of the Republican "Party";Sen.Coburn (R-of course) may represent the prototype for the perfect politician. As a doctor/deacon/senator, he need answer to no one but his "constituents"( contributors), the lord, and the hippocratic oath. (oops) Oh, and his conscience, of course....This guy's on to something big, you watch...