STEPHEN VAN ECK
The crypto-Fascists (and Christofascists) of the Republican Party are up to their old tricks again.
During the Clinton Administration, they embarked on an Impeachment Crusade in search of an offense. They were out to get him before he was even nominated! And they were willing to use all means, fair and foul. At first they poked into the old Whitewater mess, even though no illegality there could be used for impeachment, which covers only crimes committed WHILE IN OFFICE. But when that didn’t pan out, they ultimately settled for a cheap sex scandal. Thankfully, their coup d’ etat failed.
Now Republicans are calling for a Special Prosecutor to poke into some innocuous “Sestak-Gate”. They’re claiming the Administration’s job offer to him is some sort of illegal bribe, when it definitely is not. It is totally fair game for them to offer a job to anyone, whether or not it would foreclose other options. Now if you wanted to work for Amalgamated Widgets, and Consolidated Widgets offers you a job so you won’t benefit their rival, is that illegal? Not in the slightest. But the GOP is hoping to make it look that way to fool the American people. (A similar Rovian tactic succeeded in railroading former Gov. Don Siegelman of Alabama for a non-illegal non-offense!)
Note that the Bush Administration actually bribed columnists Armstrong Williams and Maggie Gallagher, with cash, to tout Administration policies. No Special Prosecutor there. No one was arrested. No one was fired, or even reprimanded. No one harped on it—certainly not FOX!
And Bush buying an endorsement from a Black minister (using the dubious Faith Based Initiative) is indistinguishable from a disguised bribe. There was even less-to-do over that. So let’s note the grotesque double standard here: Real bribes OK, non-bribe is grist for spinmeisters.
If the Republican Party takes over Congress, I guarantee they’ll make another ridiculous attempt to impeach over trumped-up piffle. The previous effort during the Clinton years distracted us from the looming threat of Al Qaeda. We cannot afford to replay such nonsense again, or we’ll deserve the rewards of our foolishness.