Pelosi slaps down Jefferson
Via Crooks and Liars: Nancy Pelosi has called on Congressman Jefferson to resign from Ways and Means. This is the entire body of the letter:
In the interest of upholding the high ethical standard of the House Democratic Caucus, I am writing to request your immediate resignation from the Ways and Means Committee.
YES. This is what we like to see.
All political parties will have corrupt members, that's virtually inevitable. But the Republican Party has woven corruption into its very fabric, and is in bed with Jack Abramoff. That's got to be a key Democratic campaign message in the midterm elections, and in order to have credibility on the issue, Democrats have to be seen to respond quickly and decisively to evidence of corruption in their midst.
Of course, I'd like to see the Dems call on Jefferson to resign his House seat entirely, but that's probably not something Pelosi can ask for without the cooperation of other power players. Get to it, guys. He's worse than dead weight, he's an anchor. Cut him loose. (Francine Busby, a Democrat running for Cunningham's old seat, has called for Jefferson's resignation.) Still, this is is a good start. How long did it take for Tom DeLay to give up his seat on the House Ethics Committee? I forget. Was it before or after he was indicted?
ETA (6:14pm): Speaking of Tom DeLay, his people have put a Stephen Colbert clip on his legal fund website, not realizing Colbert was kidding in his support of DeLay. Immune to irony, seriously. But not prosecution, thankfully. (Thanks for the link, missmurchison!)
In the interest of upholding the high ethical standard of the House Democratic Caucus, I am writing to request your immediate resignation from the Ways and Means Committee.
YES. This is what we like to see.
All political parties will have corrupt members, that's virtually inevitable. But the Republican Party has woven corruption into its very fabric, and is in bed with Jack Abramoff. That's got to be a key Democratic campaign message in the midterm elections, and in order to have credibility on the issue, Democrats have to be seen to respond quickly and decisively to evidence of corruption in their midst.
Of course, I'd like to see the Dems call on Jefferson to resign his House seat entirely, but that's probably not something Pelosi can ask for without the cooperation of other power players. Get to it, guys. He's worse than dead weight, he's an anchor. Cut him loose. (Francine Busby, a Democrat running for Cunningham's old seat, has called for Jefferson's resignation.) Still, this is is a good start. How long did it take for Tom DeLay to give up his seat on the House Ethics Committee? I forget. Was it before or after he was indicted?
ETA (6:14pm): Speaking of Tom DeLay, his people have put a Stephen Colbert clip on his legal fund website, not realizing Colbert was kidding in his support of DeLay. Immune to irony, seriously. But not prosecution, thankfully. (Thanks for the link, missmurchison!)