The Delay indictment is utterly wrong-headed

Patton Patton

Bloomberg, along with everyone else, informs us that "House Majority Leader DeLay Indicted for Conspiracy". Elsewhere, "Republican leadership in disarray after DeLay indictment"

"He's the one person they can't replace," Steny Hoyer, a senior Democrat in the House, said earlier this year of Mr DeLay.

I'm forced to point out that this is a perfect example of everything that's wrong in Washington, and by extension, with our entire political system. Tom Delay was indicted first, foremost, and solely for leading the charge to make the US Congress' delegation from Texas match the political makeup in the state. In essence, he played a crucial role in gerrymandering the gerrymandering of several earlier generations of gerrymandering. And when you're egging Dean Wormer's house, well, you're going to break a few eggs.

Tom Delay being subjected to prosecution in this case is wrong. You see, what Tom Delay should instead have been indicted for the inanity inherent in his assertion that the budget's just about as tight as it needs to be, and there's no fat left to cut. And he should be convicted for believing it, as I'm sure he does. Moron.

Steny Hoyer, quoted in the story up top is right - the Republicans are going to have one heck of a time replacing "The Hammer". I don't know that there is an inexhaustible supply of folks in the Republican delegation with the hubris and stupidity to say and believe the things that Delay has.

If Hoyer's correct, he'll be quite hard to replace, and that's an altogether good thing.

Posted by Patton Patton on   |   § 3

§ 3 Comments

1

I think we're in agreement on DeLay's misapprehension of budgetary issues. Sadly, there's no law against being stupid. Or, thankfully, or we'd all be in prison.

I've heard that this particular prosecutor has made a name for himself persecuting conservatives. I'm too lazy to check on that, but I remember hearing that this guy and a couple others throughout the country are basically the places that a lot of these type cases are regularly initiated.

Of course, that doesn't mean that the hammer isn't guilty of this particular crime. If he was ousted, at least we wouldn't have to look at his hairdo anymore.

As far as replacementability, there is a place in our government for blindly partisan attack dogs. So long as they are not actually in positions of individual power, but rather leashed by other, more sensible leaders. No matter how distasteful we find it, the mechanics of a 400+ member committee like the House of Representatives almost necessitates a man like DeLay to ramrod things through the institutional molasses.

Buckethead Buckethead

2

Good points, all. I guess what I'd prefer is a guy who can run the knife in, where needed, without leaving bloodstains and pissed-off victims everywhere he goes.

This guy was target #1 for Ronnie Earle and the Democrats, and the indictment seems highly likely to end without arraignment, based on Earle's past attempts at skewering people in high places (Hutchinson and Mattox come to mind).

To have Nancy Reid (or was it Harry Pelosi) feel comfortable mouth-farting about how this indictment is in fact an indictment of everything-not-left-wing is troubling, and that's the part that De[Ll]ay's tactics have invited over the years.

Perhaps the reason I'm less impressed than I'm supposed to be with De[Ll]ay's tactics is that the strategy behind them, pork-out-the-wazoo, as a way of "getting things done", is anathema to me.

Patton Patton

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