Category Archives: Politics: The Party of Sleaze

Andrew Cohen, at Bench Conference notes, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales “has achieved in just a few years what many legal scholars and court watchers had presumed impossible: he has made his predecessor, John Ashcroft, seem studious, grave and competent.”

To which I would add, Gonzales makes Aschcroft look non-political too. (I'm thinking of this abusive purge of key US Attorneys — replaced with loyal partisans.)

Worst AG of the past 100 years? It's a fierce competition. Consider John Mitchell and Ed Meese for starters. But there are also a number of great ones on the list.

Libby Destroyed Evidence Prior To Testifying, Cheney “Deeply Involved”.

At what point does this sort of behavior stop being politics as usual and instead become high crimes and misdemeanors?

Swing State Project finds something funny and true at the House Government Reform Committee Web site.

We all know that cornered politicians can be dangerous (and, in my experience in both Connecticut and Florida, cornered members of the Bush family are more dangerous still). Science fiction writer David Brin (author also of The Transparent Society) has been letting his imagination run loose, and he's come up with A Timely Warning To All New Democratic Members Of Congress. Calling Brin pessimistic doesn't begin to do it justice,

Let me say that I am less worried about the things that dour pundits normally dwell upon — e.g. political temptations like earmarking and lobbyist dinners — than by something far more profound and potentially devastating. Today's topic is a vital alert that I hope will percolate through channels to every officeholder and/or sincere civil servant, during an era of political transition.

Indeed, it may also be pertinent to some members of the Republican establishment. For we are about to discuss a danger and an opportunity that cross party lines. We’ll be dealing with traits like honor and pragmatism, cynicism and patriotism, cynical self-protection… and courage.

While negotiating the ethical and political minefield that is Washington, always remain wary of a particular worst-case scenario… one that can systematically undermine even the most well-meaning politicians.

That worst-case scenario is BLACKMAIL.

Brin has some sensible advice for avoiding the modern blackmailer. It starts with clean living, but it doesn't end there.

Item: right-wing radio host Laura Ingraham today urged her listeners to obstruct efforts to protect voting rights by jamming a free voter protection hotline.

Item: Michael Steele and Bob Ehrlich hit an all time low in American politics. They distributed misleading sample ballots that pretend Ehrlich-Steele are Democrats and that Jack Johnson and Kweisi Mfume endorsed both of them. It’s very clear that the party establishment is behind this — the Governor’s wife was part of the welcoming committee for the folks involved in this.