I know this was diaried out the kazoo over the past but it may really be having an impact on his credibility. This was posted Friday in the
Miami Herald;
Supporters of Martinez, including Gov. Jeb Bush, rallied Thursday to his side, but some Republicans anguished privately that the latest and most high-profile misstep marks a major debacle for the freshman senator.
The memo and Martinez's handling of it, those supporters said, could damage his relationship with other senators and portray him as driven more by political partisanship than conviction. It also could lead to questions about his level of oversight of his staff and raise doubts about his attention to detail, as Martinez acknowledged that ''unbeknownst'' to him, he handed the explosive memo to Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa.
None of the images of Martinez, supporters say, are particularly attractive.
More below the fold
And further into the article is this gem, which I couldn't believe that I was reading it. They must really think that the general public is as stupid as we look. Not that we look THAT supid.
Gov. Bush and other Republicans who reached out to Martinez for federal intervention in Schiavo's case after state legislators failed to act said they're convinced that Martinez acted without regard to politics.
''That doesn't necessarily reflect Mel's views, hence the guy got canned,'' Bush said. ``The senator's motives were not political. His motives were pure and right.''
I don't know how the hell he can stand there and rip off a comment like that with a straight face.
But then again.
Bush noted that he, too, had been pilloried for his involvement in the case -- from those furious that he intervened, to critics who believed he hadn't gone far enough.
``For someone to write a memo about the political implications or taking advantage of it for political purposes: A, they weren't very good at politics, their lack of understanding of politics is striking; and B, I don't think that was Mel Martinez's motivation to get involved, and it certainly wasn't mine.''
Then this which basically says, the guy was doing his job.
''The federal government's staff is partisan and political,'' one GOP strategist said. 'The fact the memo exists doesn't surprise me. The direction would be to give the boss some political viewpoints. He did that, he just forgot to put the caveat, `Don't give it to Ted Kennedy.' ''
Do it, just don't let them see you do it. Mentality that has gotten us where we are today.
If we keep hammering away we can certainly reduce any chance he has of being reelected.