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October 01, 2005

I didn't know. I don't recall. Where am I?

Someone needs to tell Jerry Falwell that obeying the law is actually quite godly. He likens the recent indictment against Tom DeLay as to Richard Nixon's enemies list and a political witch-hunt (ironic on a couple of levels, considering the source).

Problem is, this indictment came because of "stacks of evidence". It's painful for uber-right to acknowledge this, but the law applies to them, too.

But let's recap what got the law so interested in DeLay's activities:

The indictment stems from the activities of Texans for a Republican Majority, a political-action committee created by DeLay. The group, known as TRMPAC, is accused of trying to circumvent Texas laws that make it illegal to use corporate or union money in political campaigns.

Labeling it a money-laundering scheme, Earle claims TRMPAC took $190,000 in corporate donations and routed it — along with the names of seven statehouse candidates — to the Republican National Committee (RNC) in September 2002. The RNC then sent $190,000 in contributions to those same seven candidates, who couldn't legally have accepted corporate money.

At the heart of the conspiracy charge against DeLay is whether he knew about the transaction. Experts on Texas law say that knowledge alone might be all that is needed for a conviction under state law.

DeLay, who stepped down as House majority leader when the indictment was issued Wednesday, and his lawyers maintain he knew nothing about the money exchange at the time it happened and the indictment is a political vendetta against him.

Besides the laughability of the political vendetta charge--the GOP has been quite handy with political vendettas, after all--insisting you knew nothing leaves me rather skeptical. Come on. The man went on golf trips paid for by these folks. He was in bed with them. If he didn't know about the money exchange, then he's too stupid to be in office.

DeLay likely knew all about the money, however:

But in the first public acknowledgments of what evidence against DeLay might exist, Gibson, 76, a former sheriff's deputy and state insurance investigator, said there were ample indications of the congressman's involvement.

He said DeLay provided the district attorney with a written statement that was given to the grand jury to consider but that DeLay declined to sign a sworn document or testify under oath. "[DeLay] just gave a statement saying he did nothing. And he didn't know how that money got back down here and all that stuff," Gibson said. "We believe different from other paperwork we got."

And then DeLay's defense shifts.

"He had knowledge of it after it happened," DeGuerin said after the Wednesday indictment. "It wasn't something that he did in advance, or suggested, or anything like that."

Give me a break. If you know the group you're working with is taking bribes, and you get your butt into office based upon your supposed integrity, wouldn't you call them on it. DeLay is no working stiff, and he'd have the power to put things right. How coincidental that when he discovered this after the fact, he sat on his hands and whistled show tunes.

And frankly, no, I don't buy the defense that he just had no idea. Gosh, no one has any idea about anything these days. Ken Lay had no idea that Enron was cooking the books and robbing investors and employees blind. Ronald Regan had no idea and no recollection about Contragate. John Roberts insisted he wasn't a member of the wingut Federalist Society, and then said he couldn't remember when confronted with a committee list with his name on it.

I'm going to try that sometime. I'll knock over a liquor store, and then claim to have not known about it. I'm sure that would work for me, and other regular folks like me. It sure does seem to work for the suits in Washington.

Posted by at October 1, 2005 05:46 AM