Wednesday, December 21, 2005

The Rats Leave the Sinking GOP Ship

I’ve avoided blogging about the ongoing Republican corruption scandal for a couple of reasons: I thought that the Democrats, in their own time, have been just as corrupt, and I knew that if I waited long enough the rats would begin leaving the sinking GOP ship.

Well, events in Washington and elsewhere now compel me to blog on.

First, the breadth and depth of the Republican scandal has become so huge that I must acknowledge that nothing the Democrats have done in the past can compare.

And second and as predicted, the rats are jumping ship with several mid-level players already agreeing to turn state’s evidence.

The biggest rat of all is Jack Abramoff, the indicted Republican super lobbyist, who has been discussing a plea bargain with prosecutors. Jackie Boy would get a reduced sentence in exchange for sharing his extensive knowledge of the web of GOP corruption.

Translation: If a deal can be cut, Abramoff will deliver several Republican lawmakers on a silver platter, including former House Majority Leader Tom “The Hammer” DeLay of Texas and Rep. Bob Ney of Ohio.

I predicted a while back (when Kiko’s House was still called Web Blatherings) that either Abramoff or DeLay, or possibly both, would watch the next presidential inauguration from the TV room of a federal penitentiary. It’s lookin’ good for that.

A footnote: Washington has to be the biggest small town in America. Abramoff’s lead defense lawyer is Abbe Lowell, who defended President Clinton during Special Prosecutor Ken Starr’s probe of the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

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