DO THE CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS REALLY WANT TO GO THERE?

CNN reported today that the Republican leadership's biggest bribe-taking scumbag Whip, Roy Blunt (R-MO) objects to William Jefferson (D-LA) getting a seat on the Homeland Security Committee. Neither Blunt nor Jefferson have been charged with any bribery-related crimes yet but the FBI found $90,000 in cash inside Jefferson's freezer. Blunt raised over $3,000,000 in the last election cycle alone, most of it from lobbyists and Big Business PACs for whom he is a willing and eager whore. Roy Blunt is one of the half dozen most corrupt members of Congress and his presence in that body is a dark mark on democracy itself. "Hypocrisy" barely begins to define his complaint against Jefferson who is strictly small-potatoes compared the Blunt's systemic organized crime operations.

Blunt called the move by the Speaker Pelosi, who trumped ethics reform in last fall's congressional campaign, "such a contradiction to what the Speaker said she stood for during the campaign."

After the House Democratic caucus approved the committee assignment last night, the matter moves to the House floor. Typically committee assignments are passed unanimously on the floor without recorded votes. But Blunt told reporters on Wednesday that Republicans will object when the issue comes up on the floor and request a recorded vote.

Blunt said, "I think our side will generally think that this is not only not a good idea but totally inconsistent with the major point that the Speaker made when she wanted to be the Speaker-- that this would not be allowed, that there were penalties on their side. And the idea that Homeland Security is somehow less important than the tax-writing committee I think is a ludicrous idea."

But there's even more to that than the juxtaposition between Jefferson's frozen $90,000 and the millions of dollars in bribes scooped up by Blunt. Quite a few Republicans were appointed to powerful committee positions-- with Blunts' connivance-- who are under federal investigation by the FBI, IRS and other federal law enforcement agencies. Most egregious, of course, is Jerry Lewis, ranking member on the House Appropriations Committee. As Chairman of that committee Lewis used it-- and allowed other Republicans like Randy "Duke" Cunningham, Virgil Goode, Duncan Hunter and John Doolittle to use it-- as a way to enrich themselves in return for bilking billions of dollars from American taxpayers at the behest of corrupt lobbyists and contractors and GOP-connected hucksters. Several of Lewis' closest associates have been indicted and he is under investigation by a myriad of federal agencies and has already spent close to a million dollars in legal fees-- even before being indicted himself. But Roy Blunt feels that this sack of shit should be the GOP leader on the very committee he used as a piggy bank?

And what about Gary Miller? He's likely to be the next Republican congressman thrown in the slammer. Yet despite investigations galore, It was just a month ago that Miller was named the ranking member of the Oversight and Investigative Subcommittee of the Financial Service Committee. A DCCC spokesperson summed up what all Americans who are aware of this travesty must be thinking: "House Republicans seem to mistakenly believe that being investigated by the FBI qualifies you for an influential position on the oversight and investigative subcommittee...This kind of lack of leadership and accountability from the GOP is exactly why Americans voted for a change of direction in Congress.”


UPDATE: NEY IS IN PRISON. MILLER ISN'T... YET

Tomorrow is a special day-- and I don't just mean the day in 1954 on which both Opie (Ron Howard) and Daisy Duke (Catherine Bach) were born-- nor even the day, considerably earlier, Chopin was born (or even Roger Daltry). Tomorrow is the day that Republican criminal slime bucket, ex-congressman Bob Ney gets the prison cell door slammed on his fat ass. Two down, at least 100 to go.

I would have guessed that the next to do a little frog walk and get hauled before a judge and jury would have been House crime kingpin Jerry Lewis (R-CA). But, then along comes Gary Miller, a neighbor of Lewis' from the Inland Empire and the OC. Yesterday the DCCC put out this awesome chart that compares Ney's tactics to Miller's. They should have had columns for Tom DeLay and Randy "Duke" Cunningham as well.

Tactic	Bob Ney	Gary Miller
Tactic #1: Claim Not to be a Target of Investigation	In November 2005, Ney's spokesman said, "He has not been told that he is the target of any investigation …" [Cleveland Plain Dealer, 11/19/2005]	According to the Orange County Register, "Miller also said that he hasn't heard from anyone at the FBI or any other federal agency." [Orange County Register, 2/1/07]
Tactic #2: Blame the Media	Ney's spokesman insisted that the media was making inaccurate attacks, claiming "There have been a litany of unfounded allegations made against the congressman by the Washington media in recent months…" [CQ Today, 11/5/06]	Miller has complained of a media smear campaign, claiming, "I've been bashed in the press as though I've done something wrong…" [San Gabriel Valley Tribune, 2/2/07]
Tactic #3: Claim He Hasn't Done Anything Wrong	In January 2006, Ney's spokesman said The congressman is absolutely convinced that he's done nothing wrong." [The Hill, 1/18/06]	According to the Pasadena News, "Miller said ... 'It surprises me,' he said. 'I have no idea why they would. There has been no impropriety.'" [Pasadena Star News, 1/30/07] Miller insists he has "absolutely been falsely accused" [Roll Call, 2/9/07]
Tactic #4: Claim to Be a Victim	Ney's spokesman said that Ney was an unfortunate victim of a secret scheme. "All that this plea agreement shows is that Mr. Scanlon had a deliberate, secret and well-concealed scheme to defraud many people, and it appears, unfortunately, that Rep. Ney was one of the many people defrauded." [CQ Today, 11/25/05]	"I am honestly sick to death of false accusations, of people trying to impugn me and discredit my reputation…" Miller said. [Orange County Register, 2/1/07] According to the Pasadena Star News, "Miller said he acted as an anxious businessman trying to protect his investment and his right to develop his property - not as a powerful politician seeking to use his position for monetary gain, as he says he has been portrayed." [Pasadena Star News, 2/4/07]
Tactic #5: Tell the Republican Caucus it Just Isn't True	In May 2006, Ney addressed the Republican caucus, insisting on his innocence. According to a source close to Ney, "He is hoping to speak to the whole Conference [Wednesday] and make clear that if he believed for one second that there was any truth to these allegations, he wouldn't be standing before them and he wouldn't put his family through this," a source close to Ney said. "He recognizes the questions that are out there among his colleagues and he welcomes the opportunity to have them hear from him directly." [Roll Call, 5/10/06]	In February 2007, Miller appeared before the Republican Conference insisting on his innocence of ethical lapses involved in California land transactions. Even some his Republican colleagues noted the resemblance between Miller's speech and that made by Ney the year before. [Chicago Sun-Times, 2/11/07]