Tom Delay Indictment a Foregone Conclusion? @ Political FootBall... kicking the crap out of the pundits

Wednesday, September 28, 2005

Tom Delay Indictment a Foregone Conclusion?

According to most of the comments that I've read (or at least those from the left) it seems that recent charges against Tom Delay are a foregone conclusion. So much for guilt until proven innocence. But that has never stopped the jury of public opinion before, nor will it now. It keeps the bloggers busy and sells newspapers. Here are just some of the comments:

"Now, that's what I call "Breaking News"! CNN.com - Texas grand jury indicts Tom DeLay - Sep... It may be only a small first step, but it's a start. Here's the follow-up: Delay will step aside as Majority Leader. Temporarily. Let's hope it is more than temporary."

"Aww what a shame, poor Tom DeLay has been indicted. Pardon me a moment whilst I shed a tear and play a sonata on the world's smallest violin."

"Tom DeLay, House Majority Leader and probably the most powerful Republican in the country, has just been indicted on conspiracy charges. The dominos are beginning to fall."

Or could it be really be just a frivolous witch hunt as Delay has pleaded? Knowing how dirty the game of politics is played it would not surprise me.

"Kevin Madden, DeLay's spokesman, dismissed the charge as politically motivated. This indictment is nothing more than prosecutorial retribution by a partisan Democrat", said Madden citing prosecutor Ronnie Earle, a Democrat. Madden later added: "They could not get Tom DeLay at the polls. They could not get Mr. DeLay on the House floor. Now they're trying to get him into the courtroom. This is not going to detract from the Republican agenda."

We don't have enough information yet and only time will only tell. But when it comes to politics I live by one golden rule. No matter which side of the fence you may find yourself, we should remember that ALL politicians are self-serving. And most (if not ALL) politicians are first and foremost humans and therefore corruptible.

And speaking of that, I am reminded of the maxim "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely". So no matter how all this turns out nothing will surprise me.

But the law also provides that everyone is entitled to be presumed innocent until otherwise found guilty. We should all remember that as we follow this story.

One more thing, even if Delay is found guilty does that automatically indict all Republicans? Hardly, otherwise Teddy Kennedy and the dems would have been banned long ago.

It will be interesting to watch how this unfolds.

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4 Comments: 'It's your turn to toss the ball'...

At 4:43 PM, Anita said...: Comment spammers are going gangbusters here. You should try the word verification feature.

I love that you linked to my post. For clarification, in my (brief post)I did not presume DeLay's innocence or guilt, I merely expressed my wishes (that he would step down permanently). I am quite glad that an indictment has been handed down. Indictments need to be handed to all politicians who may engaged in unlawful activities no matter what their party affiliation is.

And I agree that ALL politicians are self-serving. You've got that right. Absolute power corrupts absolutely is true as well. That's why I never want to see our legislature run by one party. My own included!
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At 3:01 AM, Anonymous said...: Some are just less corrupt than others.
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At 3:33 PM, Anonymous said...: Ditto
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At 5:37 PM, Blog Bloke said...: If you think it's bad in the US, try Canada out for size. At least congress and the senate has some clout. In Canada all they have is a useless Senate that has no real power and full of appointed cronies. Canada has been literally ruled by the Liberal party under a virtual dictatorship for eons. Only this past year where they've had a slim minority government have they been kept in line (a little). They don't even need approval for supreme court appointments like the US does. And their lower court judges are not voted for either. Count yourself fortunate.
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