New details of the corruption of this Republican administration and this Republican Congress come to light every day now, and the mind boggles at the extent of the rot. The broader American public increasingly is becoming aware of the extent of the GOP's corruption, and this is contributing to dismal poll numbers for W and his Hill lackeys, while giving the Democrats a real shot at retaking the Congress this fall.
That is why the party must now abandon two of its own Congress members currently tainted by suspicion of corruption. For the sake of the party and this rare opportunity for resounding victory in Novemember, Alan Mollohan (D, WV) and William Jefferson (D, LA) must go now.
More below...
For those who haven't followed these depressing stories, the FBI is zeroing in on Mollohan for--allegedly--
financially benefitting from earmarks for his district.
William Jefferson faces a raft of bribery and fraud charges and his statement yesterday indicates that he expects to be indicted. Others involved in the case have pleaded guilty and will testify against him. The FBI was able to get one informant to wear a wire. Things don't look good for Rep. Jefferson.
It's important to stress that both of these men are presumed innocent until proven guilty (if they're even indicted). It's also important to note that these cases in no way show that corruption among Democrats is on par with the avalanche of unfolding revelations about Republicans, perhaps with the exception of Majority Leader Frist's alleged insider trading. That, and these two Democratic examples, if true, appear to be rather straightforward cases of abuse of power for personal gain. By contrast, such multi-tiered scandals as hookergate and the morass surrounding Jack Ambramoff are examples of systemic corruption involving multiple lawmakers, threats to national security, and a systematic skewing of the policymaking field. (For example the Ambramoff fiasco has revealed how corruption derailed any chance for improving the conditions of the indentured servants sewing our cheap--Made in the USA!--clothing on the Marianas Islands.)
So Alan Mollohan and William Jefferson may be innocent, and aren't Abramoff, Cunningham or DeLay. So what. The Democratic Party should publicly call for the resignations of Mollohan and Jefferson, and do so now.
We need a bright clear line between what Dems stand for and what the Republican machine embodies. We aren't as credible in our promises to restore ethics standards in Congress so long as we tolerate these two. If they are innocent, they nonetheless have taken actions that create the appearance of impropriety. That alone doesn't suffice for legal sanction, but it does for poltical sanction. And so long as we coddle them, the Republicans will be able to peddle the myth that Republican and Democratic problems with corruption are of equivalent severity.
If we promise to rule ethically, then we must enforce ethical standards within the party. Howard Dean and Nancy Pelosi must step forward now to cast off the ballast of Alan Mollohan and William Jefferson.