As a Democrat, it was a lot of fun taking pot shots at Denny Hastert, Tom Delay, and all their crooked cronies, when they were in power.
Remember? We used to call it the “culture of corruption.” And we made gladly the case for throwing the bums out and putting Democrats in charge, so they could clean up the mess in Washington and give the American people the cleanest government ever.
And now? Once Democrats are in power, we find ourselves having to defend Eliot Spitzer, John Edwards, David Paterson, Charlie Rangel, and Eric Massa.
Oh, my God! Corruption, it seems, is the only thing about politics that is, in fact, truly bipartisan.
Are we surprised? Not really. After all, knowing human nature, we realize that neither Democrats nor Republicans are angels.
But are we disappointed? Of course. Because we expect more of our friends and fellow Democrats. We count on them to adhere to a higher ethical standard than those no-good Republicans. And we’re embarrassed, and angry, when they don’t.
Which is not to condemn anybody. The jury is still out on David Paterson, Charlie Rangel, and Eric Massa.
But if, in fact, they are found guilty of allegations against them, then we have to be as hard on them as we were on Tom Delay.
Maybe even harder, because they were our friends.
That’s my parting shot for today.
Bill:
Ease up a bit on our guy Massa.
He is very popular among progressives in upstate NY, and we think he has been courageous in his stand on health care.
I’m sorry he feels compelled to go to Glenn Beck, but
let’s at least hear more of the story before we pass judgment.
The Youngs may go to jail for lying to the judge about how many copies they made of the John Edwards’ tape. Simply writing a book does not mean you are being truthful.
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